Bella Macey: Heartwarming moment girl who suffers from rare pain condition is finally able to touch again without being in agony after breakthrough treatment
A little girl who suffers from a chronic pain disorder so severe she screams in pain when her skin is touched has made a major breakthrough in her treatment.
Bella Macey, 10, was diagnosed earlier this year with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), a condition that leaves patients in excruciating pain.
The condition came about after a blister she sustained on her foot during a family vacation in Fiji became infected.
The schoolgirl lost movement in her right leg and was forced to use a wheelchair, with even simple tasks like showering becoming impossible because the pain was so intense.
But now, with the help of nearly $285,000 donated by generous Australians, Bella has traveled with her mother to Arkansas, USA, where she is being treated by specialists at the Spero Clinic.
Bella Macey (pictured), 10, was diagnosed earlier this year with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), a condition that leaves patients in excruciating pain
But the schoolgirl made a big breakthrough and can now touch the skin of her leg without screaming in pain
Bella suffers from allodynia, which is essentially a symptom of CRPS and means her skin is extremely sensitive to the touch.
Since the treatment, the allodynia has almost disappeared and she can now touch the skin of her leg.
“I can touch my leg, and I can touch my foot, and I don’t feel any allodynia,” Bella told A Current Affair.
It is a marked improvement from her condition last month.
It’s all sharp, it burns, it tingles, it’s all painful. It’s different pain that I never knew was possible,” she told the program.
“I can’t shower, I can’t take a bath,” Bella said.
“I can’t put on sheets or anything… not even with a tissue, you can’t touch it with anything or I’ll scream.”
The chronic condition was so brutal that even a hug from her loving parents caused her to cry in excruciating pain
Bella and her family in happier times
Doctors were initially baffled by what was wrong with Bella.
When Bella returned to their home in Melbourne after the trip to Fiji, she was rushed to the Alfred’s emergency room for treatment.
Doctors performed X-rays, ultrasounds and blood tests, but were unable to determine what was wrong.
Bella was given potent antibiotics, which proved to have little to no effect in relieving her pain.
After her original infection cleared and the pain persisted, Bella was diagnosed with the condition.
CRPS usually affects only one arm or leg after a previous injury, such as a fracture or sprain without nerve damage.
Bella Macey, 10, battles complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) in hospital as her family desperately raises money for treatment abroad
The condition developed from a blister during a vacation in Fiji, which turned into an infection, followed by excruciating pain in her leg.
It’s unclear exactly what causes CRPS, but it’s thought it may be due to the nerves in the affected area becoming more sensitive, which can change the pain pathways between the limbs and the brain.
There is no effective treatment available for CRPS in Australia. Therefore, Bella and her mother are forced to go abroad.
They have raised $283.00 through a GoFundMe page to cover medical expenses and ongoing treatment.
“Without that money we wouldn’t be here right now, so I thank everyone very much,” Bella told A Current Affair.
Despite Bella’s “big break,” her mother says she still needs a few more months of intensive treatment at the clinic, where she will hopefully learn to walk again.