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Houston Health Professionals Help 'Merchants of Baghdad'
By Meredy Fullen
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Pictured are “The Merchants of Baghdad” with their prosthetists, Tom DiBello, CPO, FAAOP, and David Baty, CPO. From left, top row, are Quasim, DiBello, Bassim, Hassan, Solah, and Ala’a. Bottom row, from left, are Nazar, Laith, and Baty. |
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As most people witness the atrocities of war on
television sets, presumably safe from harm, many viewers find
themselves motivated to make a positive contribution in some way,
whether in large or small measure. Feeling the need to reach out
with the offer of assistance, initiatives by groups or individuals
to aid returning injured veterans and families of deployed soldiers
have become commonplace across our nation, and even within the
O&P community.
Seven Iraqi men recently received treatment at the Houston
Medical Center by Dynamic Orthotics and Prosthetics, The Institute
for Rehabilitation and Research (TIRR), and several well-known
plastic surgeons. These men, small-time merchants, had their right
hands surgically removed nine years ago on Saddam Hussein's order
as punishment for allegedly dealing in American dollars following
the first Gulf War. The traditional punishment for this crime was
removal of the right hand, which permanently marked the men as
thieves, but Hussein also ordered they each be marked with a tattoo
across their foreheads, further identifying them as criminals.
Throughout their ordeal, the men continued to deny any wrongdoing,
claiming to be scapegoats for Iraq's collapsing economy.
Overheard Conversation Leads to Help
The men's journey to the United States began with an overheard
conversation in an Iraqi cafe. After viewing the tape of a surgeon
performing the amputations on the seven men, a Canadian filmmaker,
Don North, was discussing the possibility of bringing the amputees
to the United States for help when a Houston executive overhead the
conversation. The executive encouraged North to share the plight of
the seven men with a local reporter Marvin Zindler, known in
Houston for successfully procuring medical treatment for those in
situations of hardship.
Subsequently, Zindler made contact with some plastic surgeons as
well as Tom DiBello, CO, FAAOP, of Dynamic Orthotics and
Prosthetics regarding the possibility of fitting these seven Iraqi
men with prosthetic hands. Dynamic Orthotics and Prosthetics then
turned to Otto Bock with a request for a donation of prosthetic
components. The company not only donated the Otto Bock SensorHand",
its most advanced prosthetic hand, but also provided the full
support of its Texas representative, Walter Governor, and Shawn
Swanson, OT, its upper-limb prosthetic clinical specialist.
Whirlwind of Care
Upon their arrival in Houston, the men, known as the "Merchants
of Baghdad," experienced a whirlwind of medical treatment. The
plastic surgeons, Joseph Agris, MD, and Fred Kessler, MD, with the
assistance of The Methodist Hospital, removed the tattoos from the
men's foreheads and performed revisions on their residual limbs, in
preparation for prosthetic treatment. Dynamic Orthotics and
Prosthetics donated countless hours to measuring, casting, and
fitting the men, as well as designing the socket limb interface and
assembling the prosthetic hands to ensure the best possible fit and
optimal usefulness for each individual.
Throughout the fitting process, the Iraqis also worked closely
with Suzanne Krenek, OTR, and Myra Vasquez, OTR, occupational
therapists from TIRR, who trained the men in the proper use of
their new myoelectric prostheses. Myoelectric devices use the
electrical impulses generated by muscles for control. The Otto Bock
SensorHand opens and closes based on the strength of the muscle
contractions and is the only hand on the market to include an
"AutoGrasp" feature that incorporates sensory feedback technology
to measure shear forces relative to the object a person is holding.
For example, when filling a glass of water, the shear forces
increase as it fills and the hand adjusts so it does not drop the
glass. The extensive therapy included training on an Otto Bock
"MyoBoy" computer, which is essentially a video game designed to
teach the user how to control his or her prosthetic hand.
Following their extensive medical treatment and prosthetic
fittings, the Merchants of Baghdad began the exciting and emotional
task of functional training with their finished prostheses on May
18. The staff of Dynamic Orthotics and Prosthetics considered it an
honor to be the first to witness the men shaking hands and grasping
objects with their right hands for the first time in nearly ten
years.
On May 22, the men traveled to Washington DC to visit Capitol
Hill, with the hopes of shaking hands with US soldiers at Walter
Reed Army Medical Center. The Merchants of Baghdad departed
Washington DC in early June, returning to their families in Iraq.
Due to the caring hearts of many individuals, along with TIRR, Otto
Bock, The Methodist Hospital, and Dynamic Orthotics and
Prosthetics, these seven men, once marked by the evils of Hussein,
will return home happy, healthy, and whole. 
Table Of Contents - July 2004
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