Restoring Freedom of Movement: A Ten-Year-Old Girl Reclaims Her Arm and Dignity
The survivor’s journey, before and after surgery.
10-year-old girl lived with extensive limb burns that tethered her upper arm and wrist in flexion.
Movement is freedom, and burn contractures are a prison built of scar tissue. A ten-year-old girl sustained burns across her upper limb and hand, leaving thick, inelastic contracture bands that anchored her joints in awkward flexion. The scars restricted her elbow and wrist limiting her reach.
Simple daily routines like getting dressed, carrying books, and helping at home were constant struggles. Beyond the physical limitation, the visible scarring caused teasing and emotional distress in school.
Overcoming Extensive Limb Contractures
Extensive burn contractures crossing major joints create a complex mechanical problem. The rigid scar tissue pulls on adjacent healthy skin, disturbing posture and restricting muscle development throughout the growing limb.
Releasing such contractures requires experienced plastic surgeons skilled in tension distribution, flap rotation, and skin graft stabilization. For her family, private healthcare costs were an impossible barrier.
The Surgical Intervention at Shija Hospitals
Under BHF’s sponsorship program at Shija Hospitals, the girl underwent comprehensive reconstructive surgery. Dr. Rajeev B Ahuja and the Shija plastic surgical department designed a surgical plan focused on full functional range of motion.
The team systematically divided the restricting fibrous cords, mobilized the underlying connective tissues, and resurfaced the resulting surgical defect with full-thickness grafts, restoring anatomical contour and mobility.
Stepping Forward with Confidence
Her postoperative therapy has yielded outstanding functional recovery. She can extend her arm fully, raise it overhead, and attend school with restored dignity and infectious joy.
Medical photo, before surgeryFully funded by BHF, at no cost to the family.
This survivor has already been treated. ₹20,000 to 50,000 funds the next surgery at a partner hospital.
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