Today's Edition
ABU DHABI (ALETIHAD)
Doctors at SEHA’s Sheikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC) have successfully performed a specialised procedure to reduce lower-limb stiffness in a child suffering from cerebral palsy.
The facility's first selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR) procedure was carried out in collaboration with US-based Cincinnati Children's Hospital, marking the launch of a comprehensive spasticity management programme for children in the UAE.
The programme at SKMC is being implemented in line with the full clinical pathway followed by Cincinnati Children’s, including careful patient selection and preoperative assessment, surgery, postoperative care, and long-term rehabilitation.
The programme is built around a multidisciplinary model that extends beyond surgery itself. Children considered suitable for SDR are offered a structured rehabilitation pathway that may continue for up to one year, including intensive physiotherapy, regular reassessment, and coordinated follow-up designed to support mobility, function, and long-term clinical outcomes.
Dr Arun Babu Rajeswaran, Consultant Neurosurgeon and Division Chief of Neurosurgery at SEHA’s SKMC, said, “SDR is not a standalone surgery, but part of a carefully structured treatment programme that begins with rigorous patient selection and continues through long-term rehabilitation. It can make a meaningful difference in mobility and quality of life in children who are good candidates for the procedure.
"Through our collaboration with Cincinnati Children’s, we have been able to implement a comprehensive pathway that brings advanced spasticity management closer to families in the UAE.”
Dr Francesco T. Mangano, Division Chief of Paediatric Neurosurgery at Cincinnati Children’s, said, “This collaboration brings specialised SDR evaluation, surgery, and rehabilitation closer to children and families in a region where access to this level of care has previously required travel abroad. By working together to implement a complete clinical pathway, the teams at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City and Cincinnati Children’s are helping ensure availability to world-class care closer to home.”
