In 2014, when Teddy Ward was just five years old, he fell off a cliff in Topanga Canyon in Los Angeles, California.
The fall caused him to break all the bones in the left side of his body and even shattered half of his skull.
At the time, Teddy’s doctors were only able to repair his broken bones. His skull, they left half shattered after an unsuccessful attempt to repair it through surgery. Teddy was simply told to wear a helmet at all times.
For the next two years, Teddy’s mother, Lisa dedicated her energy to keeping her “rambunctious” son out of friends’ homes.
Teddy wasn’t allowed to go on play dates, attend sleepovers, or join in on birthday parties; no mother wanted the responsibility of caring for a child without half his skull. Nor did anyone want to risk having Teddy get hurt while at their home.
Now, after two years, doctors at the Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles have finally discovered the perfect solution to repair Teddy’s skull.
Doctors have created a 3-D implant made of PolyEtherEtherKetone (or, PEEK) in the shape of Teddy’s skull and are surgically inserting it into his head, finally closing the shattered part of his skull.
The surgery went without a hitch and now, seven-year-old Teddy is finally free to run, scream, and tumble to his heart’s content.
His mom jokingly said, “I put the word out, literally a few days ago, that Teddy is available for sleepovers!”
But as much as she jokes, and as happy as she is to see her son return to his energetic self, she knows that she is one of “the lucky ones.”
“And we know it. And we’re thankful,” she adds.
You can watch a news clip of Teddy here:
