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Donors Fund Life-Changing Rehab Equipment Diana Walker, a speech pathologist at Henry Ford Health System, has seen firsthand the impact that new advances in head and neck rehabilitation equipment can make in peoples' lives. Two pieces of equipment in particular, the Therabite, a jaw motion rehabilitation system, and the tracheoesophageal voice prosthesis (TEP), have led to marked improvements in patients. Both are funded in part through philanthropic generosity. Walker uses the Therabite to improve trismus (reduced ability or inability to open the mouth) in patients who have had surgery or radiation to the head and neck area. The system uses passive motion to stretch connective tissue, mobilize joints and strengthen weakened muscles. The Therabite helps Walker’s patients increase their ability to open their mouths, allowing them to eat, speak and perform daily activities with more ease. “This can improve quality of life in these patients, even in terms of pain, because increasing jaw range of motion can reduce pain and inflammation that they are experiencing because of their trismus,” says Walker. She uses TEP in patients who have had their larynx removed due to cancer or another issue. For some patients, finally being able to speak again is a lifesaver: “I had a patient who was unable to get a TEP placed at the time of his surgery due to the extent of it,” says Walker. “He had to wait three months, and during this time, the patient was really struggling and feeling down that he could not speak to his wife and family without writing to communicate with them. He was not interested in the other voice restorative options following laryngectomy and would only write to communicate. After three months, he was able to have a voice prosthesis placed. I saw him right after it was placed and taught him how to use the device to speak. “His wife was present, and the first thing he did was look at her and say, ‘I love you.’ He and his wife both started crying. It was such a sweet moment.” |
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