Victoria Komada Little British girl with tibial hemimelia Date of Birth: . Country: Great Britain

Content:

1. A British Girl with Tibial Hemimelia
2. Seeking Help in Florida
3. A Difficult Diagnosis
4. Refusing to Amputate
5. Finding Hope in Dr. Dror Paley
6. A Painful Recovery
7. A Brighter Future
8. Tibial Hemimelia: A Rare Condition
9. The knees may also be turned inward.
10. The cause of hemimelia is usually unknown.

A British Girl with Tibial Hemimelia

Born with severely deformed legs due to a condition that occurs in only one in a million people, Victoria has finally "got on her feet" after a major surgery.

Victoria Komada, from Norwich, was born with tibial hemimelia, which resulted in her left tibia being shortened and her right tibia absent altogether. Her parents, Marzena and Dariusz, went so far as to seek the advice of eight specialists, but all said that amputation was the only option.

Seeking Help in Florida

Finally, they found a limb reconstruction specialist in Florida. He used a procedure involving a metal cage that slowly manipulated Victoria's left leg back into place. Unfortunately, her right leg was too severely affected and had to be amputated as originally suggested. A year after receiving a prosthetic leg, the young girl recently took her first steps on her own, wearing a sparkly pink shoe.

A Difficult Diagnosis

Victoria's parents moved from Poland to the UK 14 years ago, and Marzena soon became pregnant. Her pregnancy went smoothly, with no signs of any problems, but issues became apparent as soon as Victoria was born.

"'The nurse came to me and said that she will give me my baby in a minute,' recalled Marzena, 'and that there's something wrong with my baby's legs.'"

An orthopedic surgeon confirmed that Victoria had tibial hemimelia, a condition where the tibia is either absent or shortened, resulting in twisted legs.

Refusing to Amputate

Victoria's parents were adamant that they didn't want to "cut off" their daughter's legs. "'I said, 'No, she needs her own legs, no prosthetics, no amputation,'" said Dariusz. "'I couldn't agree that you can take her legs off. No, no, no.'"

Finding Hope in Dr. Dror Paley

Through their own research online, Victoria's parents discovered Dror Paley, an orthopedic surgeon specializing in limb lengthening and reconstruction. After reviewing X-rays of Komada's legs, he was confident that he could help, but he warned that the treatment would take a year. The family had to raise over £300,000 to cover the surgery costs. Although they managed to raise £190,000 on a crowdfunding platform, Dr. Paley agreed to operate on Victoria for a reduced fee.

He used a Taylor Spatial Frame, a cylindrical metal cage, to manipulate Victoria's left leg, and it slowly began to push her bones back into place. "We had to amputate the right leg," said Paley. "'There was no tibia at all and almost no quadriceps muscle, so the result functionally would have been poor.'"

A Painful Recovery

While the procedure to implant the frame in Victoria's left leg was successful, she endured a difficult and painful recovery.

"'After the surgery, it was really hard for her, really bad moments,' said Dariusz. 'She was crying because of the pain. She couldn't sleep at night, but after a week, slowly, slowly, she was feeling better.'"

After the swelling subsided a few months later, the frame continued to stretch her limb. Victoria was fitted with a prosthetic for her right leg and was soon taking her first steps.

A Brighter Future

"'For me, I was waiting for this moment for such a long time,' said Dariusz. 'Now my daughter is happy. In the future, she'll be even happier. She will not feel sad because she is not the same as others.'"

Her parents are hopeful that Victoria will have a normal childhood, just like any other kid.

"'She's a normal child,' said her father. 'She's very clever. She's always happy. I just want to give her normal life, and she will have normal life because she has this strong power in her.'"

Tibial Hemimelia: A Rare Condition

Victoria Komada's story was featured on TLC's "Body Bizarre."
What is Tibial Hemimelia?

Tibial hemimelia is a range of limb deformities caused by a shortened or absent tibia.

The fibula, which is connected to the tibia by the tibiofibular joint, interosseous membrane, and syndesmosis, is usually unaffected.

Tibial hemimelia often causes foot deformities, and some affected individuals may have extra toes.

The knees may also be turned inward.

This birth defect occurs in approximately one in a million people. In 30% of cases, both legs are affected.

The cause of hemimelia is usually unknown.

Severe cases of hemimelia can sometimes be detected during prenatal ultrasounds.

Most patients require surgical intervention, and the success of the procedure depends on how much bone is missing and whether the surrounding muscles are affected.

Treatment typically involves lengthening the leg by manipulating the bone back into place.

In cases where the tibia is completely absent, amputation may be necessary, followed by fitting with a prosthesis.

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