Shayaan is a Bahraini boy who was born without both arms in 2006. His rare disorder is called dysmelia. And now his mother is reaching for modern technologies to help her son perform simple tasks that people without limb differences take for granted.
His mother, Fadia, said in the interview: “On 11th December 2006 I had my second child. My son Shayaan, was born that day bringing with him shock, disbelief and unimaginable pain. He was born with no arms. We were all mourning instead of celebrating the new addition in the family. While the whole family cried, my older son Sheheryar (6 at the time) accepted his younger brother with open arms and an open heart!”
She added: “Sheheryar showed me all the body parts that Shayaan had, rather than focusing on the ones he did not. I then looked at my baby for hours concentrating on his tiny eyelids and ears that showed the most intricate network of capillaries and wondered how the creator could miss making his arms? How could he forget and how could he make a mistake?”
Fadia learned to focus on the things Shayaan could do and body parts he had. And he managed to learn how to do many things by using his feet.
He knows how to play, eat and drink, as well as use a computer only with his feet. But his mother was searching for a way that could make Shayaan’s life easier.
Pakistani Mir Bayyaan Baloch was born without his right hand but his relatives contacted Team Unlimited and Bioniks. In the result, a prosthetic arm was made on a 3D printer by Xplorer 3D. He was the first to receive such treatment in Pakistan, and the artificial limb was made at NED University of Engineering and Technology.
Fadia was interested in the case of Mir Bayaan and decided to find out more. She reached Xplorer 3D. The company that is now based in Dubai, has a dedicated healthcare department focused on using additive manufacturing in the medical field. Tayyab Alam, CEO of Xplorer 3D, asked Fadia to send him videos of Shayaan using his feet, as well as the measurements of the arm. Tayyab wanted the resulting prosthetic arm to be a useful tool that could hold a spoon, a pencil and make Shayaan’s life overall easier.
Shayaan’s writing after using a pen’s extension for the prosthetic device.
Tayyab Alam came to Bahrain and stayed there for several days, working on the design of a prosthesis with various attachments.
The resulting prosthetic solution allows Shayaan to do various things with ease. It utilizes the system of magnetic attachments that are easily removable. Shayaan uses it for eating with a spoon, writing with a pen, combing his hair. Other attachments include a paintbrush, capacitive stylus for touchscreens and a finger for typing on a keyboard.
This new device is just another testament to how Shayaan managed to overcome the challenges. It’s also important to mention that his mother, Fadia, runs the Special Families Support Group (SFS), allowing her to connect with other families.
“I have seen the talent these specially abled children display and the purity of their hearts that make them stand out among ‘normal’ people,” she said. “We are only disabled if we want to be.”
This story is a great example of how 3D printing improves lives and how the technology can be used in healthcare.
The design for this prosthetic tool can be both downloaded and modified, with the .stl and Sketchup files found here: https://mega.nz/#F!F81SARRI!wyBPus8wzkEsu80lHmML-w. Such prosthetic tool can be printed with a machine such as the Creatbot F430.
