• Have an OI Child
• Locating a Doctor
• Taking Care
• Recognizing Fractures
• Independence
• Mobility Aids
• Schooling
• Parents with OI

Dealing with fractures will be very difficult for you. Nothing pulls harder at a parent’s heart than to repeatedly witness your child experiencing the pain of a fractured bone. Try to remain calm and comfort your child the best you can.

How does one know when a baby with OI has a fracture? In most instances, your child will cry out suddenly and loudly. Sometimes you might actually hear the snap of the bone. If you suspect a fracture, first try to calm your child. When the crying has stopped, very slowly and carefully experiment by gently touching or barely lifting each limb.

You can usually pinpoint the fracture fairly accurately. When you lift or move the fractured bone even slightly, your child will wince or cry out. This reaction will help you determine where the fracture has occurred. Be especially careful to immobilize this bone as much as possible when moving your child. There are different types of fractures; some are extremely painful, while others are more tolerable.

With fractures of the arm, many children hold the sore arm against their bodies in an effort to self-splint it. With some fractures, you might notice swelling or bruising of the area or warmness of the skin around the area.


Parenting Tips : Dental Problems !

About 50 percent of patients with OI have blue or brown teeth that are “opalescent” or milky in appearance. The baby teeth erupt with this color—the color does not develop after eruption. The color difference may first be noted by parents and is usually obvious. Dental abnormalities cannot be prevented, and cleaning will not change the discoloration. The rate of decay can increase if teeth wear away because of poor enamel. The other 50 percent of OI patients have teeth of normal color. Since the first baby tooth erupts at about six months of age, you can tell at that time whether the rest of the teeth will be affected; if the first baby teeth are white, then the rest of the teeth will be white and there is no need to be concerned about anything except routine dental care. If, on the other hand, the first teeth are blue or brown, the other baby teeth, as well as some or all of the permanent teeth, will also be discolored. Dental abnormalities vary widely in individuals with OI, and there appears to be no correlation between the severity of the bone problem and the severity or even the presence of tooth discoloration.

What can you do? First, if your child is diagnosed as having OI at birth, he or she should see a dentist as soon as the first tooth erupts. If the teeth are discolored, they may wear down very rapidly; in fact, they may wear down even before they completely erupt. Fewer than half of the individuals with discolored teeth, however, have severe wear problems. One of the main methods of treatment has been to place crowns over the teeth to prevent them from wearing.