Before Zoe Lush was even born, there were signs of big trouble. Zoe's mother, Chelsea, got the news at her three month ultrasound. When the perinatologist gently pressed the wand down on Chelsea's belly, Zoe's soft skull curiously molded from a circle to an oval shape under the pressure of the wand. A closer look revealed further damage. Zoe's femur was in two separate pieces and many of Zoe's ribs were in multiple stages of fracture. Zoe's bones were already breaking in the womb. The concerned doctor looked up at Chelsea, "Mrs. Lush, there's something very wrong with your child."
Months later Zoe entered into the world broken. She fractured her collarbone during the birth, and within Zoe's first 30 days of life she broke both of her ams and her leg, and then her right arm again. Zoe Lush was diagnosed with Osteogenesis Imperfecta, commonly known as Brittle Bone disorder.
When we hear about Brittle Bone, we often think of somebody who is slightly more prone to breaking a bone than the average person - that would be type I OI. Type I is the Brittle Bone most people are vaguely familiar with. People with Type I don't produce sufficient collagen to grow strong bones. However, most will grow to natural height with normal looking bones that are slightly more fragile than yours and mine.
But there are other, more menacing types of OI.
Zoe has Type III, the most severe type of OI you can possibly survive. OI is a form of dwarfism. Arms and legs are often deformed from both the irregular, under-mineralized bone structure as well as repeat fractures. Many children born with Type III fracture their ribs simply from taking a deep breath. Some infants will pass away from respiratory failure, especially early in life. If a child with Type III does survive those first, formidable months, they will never grow much past 3 feet tall, and will likely spend most of their lives in a wheelchair.
At 3 months, Zoe was breaking so often Chelsea had resorted to splinting Zoe herself because doctors were so unfamiliar with the condition. Often times doctors handle OI children like regular kids, causing even more breaks.
Zoe also has brittle teeth, eating anything but soft food can cause chipping. Zoe's ear bones are just as fragile as any other bone she has. Loud, piercing noises can shatter her eardrums.
Perhaps one of the most important facts about OI is that it does NOT cause mental delays. At a glance, many people see Zoe's physical deformities and conclude that she's also mentally handicapped. Zoe does have difficulty speaking, and often favors sign language instead. During one of Zoe's trips to theCHIVE offices, she accidentally pushed her juice glass to the floor exclaiming, "Oh… poo!"
Zoe has remarkable parents. Curtis Lush just received his degree as a surgical tech from CNI College. Until last week, Curtis would attend classes from 7am - 3pm, then rush to Hoag Hospital where he works as an Operating Room Assistant until Midnight.
Chelsea takes care of Zoe full-time but dreams of returning to school to complete her nursing degree. To assuage Zoe's massive medical bills, the family is living with Zoe's grandparents. Both Curtis and Chelsea are determined to create a better life for themselves and their new family. Chelsea recently found out she's pregnant with her second child.
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