Day of Rest

Kimberly is sleeping as I type this.

One of the doctors has walked in. He says that the MRI and ultrasound will be performed today. They don't waste time here.

What a different landscape here. It made me chuckle to see two cows walking down the middle of the street in front of the hospital.

I am having difficulty getting an internet connection here. So, I may have to use my phone for all updates; and unfortunately that means no pictures - since every photo costs 25 bucks to upload. I will take plenty of pics, to post later.

Just Landed in Delhi

It is 1:45 in the morning here. We are all tired, but excited to finally be here.

Now to find our driver!

Hong Kong Airport

The three of us are sitting here, waiting for our last flight of the journey. We have to wait another hour and a half to board the flight to Delhi.

We all slept terribly on the last 11 hour flight. Cathay Pacific offers excellent service though.

Already Tired

And, we are only waiting for our first flight to take off. We need to be liberated!

Taking the double decker!

Waiting for our flight to Hong Kong

About to leave Canada, on our first leg of the journey. I still cannot believe we are going to India.

Leaving Edmonton

Today We Fly Out

Today is the day we go! A long day of travel ahead of us...

Magnetic Resonance Venography (MRV) Scan

We are not radiologists by any stretch, but looking at this picture, it seems clear that blood flow on the right side of the head is much less than on the left.

This image was taken during our trip the False Creek Medical Clinic, in Vancouver, in April of 2010.

It will be interesting to compare this image to the ones taken before, and after, the procedure in India.

Other MS Patients Stories of Recovery

Hopefully Kimberly will be saying something similar after she returns from her procedure:
http://www.globaltvedmonton.com/video/index.html?categoryid=1050123335

Kimberly on GlobalTV

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIyqrIhhGG0

What is "Liberation"?

Liberation is the name given to the process of opening narrowed veins in the neck of patients with a condition which has been called CCSVI. It is thought that these narrowed veins reduce the blood flow from the brain. The theory is that due to the reduced calibre of the veins, blood (and the iron of which hemoglobin is composed of) stays in the brain longer than non-CCSVI patients. The result is that this iron gets deposited in the brain, where the immune system treats it as an invader. When the immune system attacks the iron, it therefore also attacks the neurons in the brain itself.

Once the veins have been opened, the blood drains normally, and the associated iron is also flushed away. There have been anecdotal reports of patients having symptoms stop, or even reverse.

The procedure is very controversial, and there are no long term studies as to its extended effects. Several studies are underway to verify the theory, but they are in their early stages.

The North American and European medical communities are treating the theory with a healthy dose of skepticism. The only options for treatment are currently only available in three countries: Poland, India, and Bulgaria.

A very good overview of this theory and procedure can be found on the CTV news website:
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20091120/W5_QandA_091121/20091121?hub=Health

Preflight Check

We had Avery take some video of Kimberly walking and doing some balance exercises last night. We will compare these to the post procedure performance next week. As you can see, she is somewhat off balance when she walks.

T Minus 6 Days Until India

So, we just booked our flights yesterday to Delhi. We fly out Friday, July 30. The liberation procedure is booked for August 2nd.

More updates to come. We will posting our progress throughout the trip.