EMAIL DETAILS

Dear HA Member,

A Call to Action

Last night, (5/5/2011), ABC's Grey's Anatomy featured hydrocephalus for the
second time in the show's history. The first time was in November of 2009
and involved Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus, which affects older adults. In
last night's episode 'White Wedding', Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey) and
Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo), adopted a baby from Africa with hydrocephalus.

This is a great opportunity to spread awareness and we would like to encourage
members of our community to contact their local ABC affiliate and say:

"You may have seen that Dr. Shepherd and Dr. Grey adopted a baby from Africa
with hydrocephalus. While the treatments for hydrocephalus are less accessible
in Africa, it is still a condition fraught with very antiquated treatments
and difficult outcomes here in the US. The primary treatment for hydrocephalus
is the surgical implantation of a medical device called a shunt.


• Unfortunately, shunts have the highest failure rate of any medically implanted
device -- 50% fail within two years
• Due to this failure rate, many individuals must live a life filled with repetitive
brain surgeries just to survive.
• Approximately one in every 500 live births has hydrocephalus.

My (son, wife, daughter, self, etc.) has hydrocephalus and have experienced
(X) surgeries as a result. Would your health editor be interested in meeting
him/her/me and learning more about this condition that affects approximately
1 million Americans?"

Here is the link to the Wikipidia article listing ABC Affiliates


Rick Smith
Acting CEOHydrocephalus Association