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A little BRAVE girl has to relearn how to walk and talk after an episode of chicken pox that caused her to have a stroke.
Four-year-old Sophia Fuller suffered permanent brain damage and her use of the right arm is limited after suffering an "extremely rare" stroke.
In the UK, only about five in every 100,000 young people suffer from stroke each year – although it has been discovered that chickenpox increases the risk of ischemic stroke in children.
Sophie from Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire, fell from bed in July after falling ill.
When dad Edwin took her in his arms, she began to have epileptic seizures and was rushed to the Royal Children's Hospital where she stayed for eight weeks.
Her mother Tracy, 33, said, "When I saw her, I panicked and said that she had a stroke – that's really heartbreaking."
The doctors told the two men to keep talking to Sophie, but no one could tell them immediately if she was going to get out of it.
"My husband understood how bad it was – it's the worst thing you can imagine," said Tracy.
Sophie must now receive injections to lighten the blood twice a day, because her blood vessels are still very narrow since her stroke.
She also needs 24-hour care, although she managed to return to Nuremberg for 45 minutes a day.
How are chickenpox and stroke related?
Ischemic stroke occurs when blood supply to a part of the brain is interrupted.
It may be difficult to say because the signs are not as pronounced in young children as in adults. In some children – especially babies – there are almost no symptoms.
But others may have the following symptoms:
- weakness or paralysis of one side of the body
- falling face
- speech problems
- headache
- vomiting
- seizures
Chickenpox is caused by a virus that, according to research, can increase the risk of ischemic stroke in children, even if it is rare.
The Stroke Association states: "It is thought that the virus causes narrowing of the blood vessels in the head.
"Research suggests that children with underlying cardiac and vascular conditions, who are infected with the virus, are at a higher risk of stroke."
And she has a tricycle adapted because she can no longer use her precious bike, which was a birthday present.
But medically, she did not completely leave the wood, because Sophie still risks having a second shot at a given moment.
Tracy, a mother of three, explained that "Sophie will always be at risk".
"It affected her mentally and physically, we keep her in our room and do not let her sleep alone – we are petrified.
"It completely changed our lives.
"You live every day and we remind you what happened."
While the family gets angry "everyday," they gather around the little girl to help her recover.
"One of the doctors said it was almost like a grieving process," Tracy explained.
"It's almost as if you had lost your little girl – it was a very strong girl, she is still there."
Doctors have described the risks of "very, very rare" that a young child is suffering a stroke.
But that proves that no matter who, whatever its age, may have a stroke – something Tracy hopes to show by telling Sophie's story.
"No four-year-old child should experience this experience – no matter who can have a stroke at any age – I've learned so much.
"She came so far in just four and a half months.
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"We are very proud of how far we have come, and we want to thank everyone who supported us, and the hospital staff saved his life and we can not thank them enough.
"We think they're part of our family because of what they've done."
The family is now planning to take Sophie to Disneyland Paris next month so she can meet her favorite Beast from Beauty and the Beast.
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