In the Caribbean, children diagnosed with scoliosis often can’t get access to braces to help correct their spinal curves.
“There is a huge population with scoliosis down there and no decent methods of bracing, so many cases turn surgical,” said Ksenia Major, BOCO, a Certified Pediatric Orthotist with Valentine Orthotics & Prosthetics, Richmond, VA. “They don’t have ready access to bracing down there. The closest place is Barbados and a lot of families don’t have the means or the funds to get there.”
For the last few years, Ksenia has been working with the World Pediatric Project to provide bracing solutions for kids in St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and the Grenadines. The World Pediatric Project is a nonprofit that provides diagnostic and surgical care for children in 12 countries in the Caribbean and Central America that don’t have access to advanced medical care.
In the past, Ksenia has fabricated braces using molds taken on-site by another medical professional, but in April, Ksenia became the first orthotist to be included in a World Pediatric Project trip.
Before the trip, Ksenia asked for Thoracic Lumbar Sacral Orthosis (TLSO) pad donations, and Boston Orthotics & Prosthetics came through, providing several scoliosis pads that Ksenia used to fit braces for children that needed them. “They came in great, I used all of them,” she said.
With the help of donated supplies, Ksenia provided clinical support for the World Pediatric Project trip, fitting and adjusting 80 braces in St. Lucia and another 60 in St. Vincent.