Matthew Van Daff from Villa Park, IL is a two year old boy born with a brain injury. Due to a lack of oxygen during the last days of pregnancy, labor or delivery, he suffered severe brain damage. He was immediately transported from Elmhurst Hospital to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Lutheran General Hospital where he spent the first 104 days of his life.
Because of his brain damage, Matthew has been diagnosed with Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy, Chronic Lung Disease, and seizures. He has a trachestomy to help him breathe and is fed through a g-button (a tube surgically inserted into his stomach). He is severely developmentally delayed and was just fitted for a wheelchair.
Matthew needs 24-hour care and supervision, 16 of which are from skilled nursing in the family home. He receives various therapies in the home (physical, occupational, speech, developmental and vision). He also travels to Easter Seals and Marionjoy Rehabilitation Hospital for supplemental therapies. Matthew's family and loved ones are very passionate and motivated to give him the best care possible and to help him with his rehabilitation and improve his quality of life.
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