Eli, aged 6, faces life-long disability

Afflicted with brachial plexus paralysis since birth, 6-year-old Eli needs emergency surgery. Discover her story and how you can help.

Eli, a 6-year-old Togolese girl, is disabled in her right arm. And for good reason: she was traumatized at birth. Due to a lack of follow-up during her pregnancy and the absence of an ultrasound scanner, her weight could not be anticipated.

Weighing 4.7 kg at the time of delivery, the midwife was forced to pull excessively hard on her arm to ensure her survival.

Unfortunately, this gesture was not without consequences: Eli’s nerves were severed in the arm’s nervous system, causing brachial plexus paralysis. As a result, his right arm is now inert.

Shortly after her birth, Eli was accompanied by the functional rehabilitation team at the Centre Médico-Social de Cacaveli, in the Lomé district where she was born.

Eli 6 years old risks life-long disability

For three long years, she has assiduously followed rehabilitation sessions. Unfortunately, despite these constant efforts, her arm remains paralyzed, hampering her development and growth.

If we don’t take action, Eli will never be able to use his right arm again.

A life-saving operation is possible!

Eli’s family were unable to have her operated on in time, due to a lack of resources and the absence of a suitable healthcare facility nearby. Indeed, this type of pathology needs to be treated at an early age, between 6 months and 3 years, via nerve surgery.

Because of the wait, Eli’s nerves are no longer operable, but another type of operation is still possible: a tendon transfer to revive his shoulder. To this end, a team is standing by at the CHU Sylvanus Olympio in Lomé. Our friend Dr Philippe Valenti, an orthopedic surgeon and traumatologist in Paris, is available to operate on Eli and a dozen other children currently on the waiting list.

The aim of the mission is also to provide theoretical training for students specializing in pediatric surgery, and to reinforce their autonomy in the management of these disabling pathologies, from an early age.

We need your help to make this mission a reality!

To enable us to care for Eli and fourteen other children, we need to raise the sum of 16,000 euros. Full treatment for Eli will cost 1,300 euros (including consultation, operation, hospitalization and physiotherapy sessions).

With your support, Eli will be able to regain the use of his arm and have fun like other children his age. She’ll grow up well-balanced and look to the future with hope and serenity.

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