Eight year old Jarrett Byrd is known as a superhero at South Central Rehabilitation Services. You may ask why? Jarrett was born with a very rare condition known as osteogenesis imperfecta, also referred to as brittle bone disease. The genetic disease causes bones to be defective and fracture easily, often with no obvious cause or minimal injury. In the United States, less than 50,000 people have this condition.

Jarrett Byrd

All people with osteogenesis imperfecta have weak, brittle bones. Some living with brittle bone disease may have only a few broken bones over their lifetime, while others may have hundreds of broken bones in their lifetime, including broken bones before birth. Jarrett was one of the newborns born with fractures.

Renee, Jarrett’s mom, discusses his condition. “When Jarrett was first born we thought he may have dwarfism because he was so short. After testing, we learned he had brittle bone disease. Jarrett was born with fractures and has had 10 fractures since birth. With this condition, he will never reach the average height of an adult or child.”

Jarrett’s bones are also bowed and when he is close to having a new fracture the sclera (or white part of a person’s eye) change from white to blue. Both symptoms are common in individuals living with brittle bone disease. Being that is there is no cure for brittle bone disease, the treatment for this disease focuses on managing symptoms and increasing bone strength. Jarrett was able to find assistance from the occupational, physical and speech-language therapists at South Central Rehabilitation Services.

Alex Arledge, PT, DPT, states, “Jarrett started to attend therapy in 2020. When he first started, he was apprehensive to sit independently, to scoot around on the floor and to even reach out of his base of support. However, through therapy services, we have been able to significantly improve his confidence, his motivation, his strength, and his ability to move around the floor. He is a very special kid to us.”

Alex Arledge, PT, DPT, using physical therapy modalities with Jarrett.

With physical therapy, the goal is to increase strength, flexibility and range of motion. “At first, Jarrett did not want to attend therapy, but he has fallen in love with his care team. He looks forward to going to therapy and working with everyone,” says Renee. “Alex and Kelli are very patient with him and work with him on levels that he can do and understand. Through their guidance, he is more independent and that is major accomplishment for Jarrett. His current goals are to walk and be able to fully dress himself without any assistance.”

Jarrett also receives occupational therapy, which addresses his fine motor skills. Kelli Brogan, MSOTR/L, CAS, and team at South Central have been able to teach Jarrett new skills and he is able to dress himself, play games, and be more independent.

Kelli explains Jarrett’s experience, “His experience is unique because it is not all rehabilitation. We have adapted and modified how he does things. For example, we focus a lot on strengthening his hands so he can gain his independence in dressing, bathing and even handwriting. These small things will help him be successful in his academics.”

Early in his treatment plan, Jarrett also received speech-language therapy services, but has graduated from the program.

When asked about his progress, Jarrett states, “I feel like I have learned a lot. I have learned to scoot, I can sit on someone’s knee and stand up now. I am currently working on being able to walk. I practice a lot, but I have to be careful because I am scared my legs will break.”

Kelli Brogan, MSOTR/L, CAS, using occupational therapy modalities with Jarrett.

Jarrett has many activities he participates in during his therapy sessions. His favorite activities are to scoot, to play corn hole, basketball, and bowling.

When asked what advice he would share with others, Jarrett says, “I have broken bones, so I cannot do much. Some people can do everything, but I cannot. I do as much as I can every day. When I am able to start walking, I will walk and walk. So I encourage everyone to do the most they can every day, because that is my goal too.”

Renee closed by stating, “I encourage any parent to take the step to get their children the help they need. South Central Rehabilitation Services has supported us throughout this journey. The therapist are very helpful and they care about each person. South Central is an awesome place.”

If you or a loved one would like to learn superhero skills like Jarrett, South Central encourages you to learn more about our therapy services. South Central Rehabilitation Services offers a variety of services, including Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy and Speech Therapy.  The health system has four convenient locations in Laurel, North Laurel, Taylorsville and Ellisville. Many of our therapists have over 30 years of experience with specialized certifications including manual therapy, speech disorders, sports medicine, vestibular rehab and lymphedema management. For more information, visit scrmc.com or call 601-399-0530.