Joe Mullich
Freelance Health Writer
818-907-9109
New Jersey Monthly
At Last, Silencing the Voices
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RETRAINING BRAIN CELLS. Karen and Raymond Kolvites's daughter, Christina, was born three months before her due date, weighing a mere two pounds and suffering from a grade-four seizure from hydrocephalus, an abnormal accumulation of fluid that enlarges the skull and compresses the brain. Children born with a grade-four seizure, the Kolviteses learned, usually do not survive.
The Kolviteses pushed for continued treatment, despite's their daughter's brain damage and other ailments. They relied on physical therapists to help stretch Christina stiff muscles. But to help expand Christina's debilitated mind, the Kolviteses turned to an experimental machine developed by a psychiatrist at the University of Medicine and Dentistry in New Jersey -Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
The unusual computer allows children to manipulate and control their environment. Mastery of this concept is key to a child's intellectual development. First, a string was attached to Christina's tiny arm. When she moved her arm, images on a computer screen and sounds were affected. At first, Christina seemed oblivious to the colorful pictures and the squeaks, bangs and rattles emanating from the strange contraption. In time, though, the six-month-old seemed to learn that her actions were controlling the events--a routine cognitive development for a normal child, but remarkable for one born with Christina's condition.
"Christina's attention span was very short before using the machine," says Karen. Her husband concurs. "The stimulation encouraged her to think," says Raymond. "If she didn't have the outside stimulation, she wouldn't have even tried. She couldn't think on her own."
Dr. Michael Lewis, the psychiatrist who developed the machine, says each of the 20 children born with brain damage who have used the machine over a three-month period have shown positive responses. They stayed awake more often when away from the machine; they tended to be less fussy and cry less; their attentive behavior improved.
Dr. Lewis theorizes that the brain is "plastic," explaining that if one brain cell is damaged then another cell can be taught to take its place. "The brain is an adaptive organ," says Dr. Lewis. "If that environment is dull, our best guess is that the richness of the brain's neuro-connectors is not as great as when the child is placed in a very stimulating environment." This can be especially true for children born with brain damage; even the most diligent, caring parents can become depressed and discouraged by the child's lack of responsiveness.
"In our studies, we find how the child ends up functioning--as demonstrated by memory and general intelligence--is determined not only by the severity of their brain damage but by their stimulation at home," says Dr. Lewis. "If that environment is rich and stimulating, the child may overcome the initial handicapping. The stimulation might actually provide a new neuro network for the brain or may act in some corrective fashion on those damaged cells."
The computer creates a stimulating environment that prompts brain-damaged children to learn about affecting and controlling their environment. Dr. Lewis says children as young as a couple of weeks are able to learn from the device.
In cases like Christina's, where the brain damage is extensive, progress is likely to be slower and the results less astounding. Christina has progressed much further than experts would have initially expected, but she still has physical and mental problems to overcome, such as trouble recalling events.
Still, the Kolviteses have continually provided the kind of stimulating environment that Lewis recommends. Raymond even quit his job so he could spend more time with Christina. The Hillsborough Township couple are buoyed by the fact that Christina, now five, is able to attend public school, albeit needing special education classes. (continued)