Clever, cute and incredibly mischievous, Vin is a ray of sunshine in his family: always laughing. Watching him ask everyone to play football with him, so sociable, you wouldn’t imagine this young boy was barely able to walk until his 7 years old.

Vin was affected by the polio virus when he was  4 months old. As a result, the muscles in his legs became very weak, which eventually led to paralysis and affected his mobility development. When he took his first steps, at the age of 3, he walked with toes dragging on the floor and he was moving with a lot of pain and difficulty, unable to run or play with the other kids.

In Laos, a lot of people suffer from mobility-impairement their whole life because they are not aware that treatments exist for their condition. Hopefully for Vin, his mother heard about COPE and CMR services and, when he was 7, she brought him to Phonsavan Provincial Rehabilitation Centre. With the right orthotic and physiotherapy treatments, it is possible to support his weak muscles and train them to walk better, and even run!

Vin’s mother is very happy. “Doctors told us in the next few years his legs and feet would totally recover so he won’t need any orthotics anymore. I feel very blessed that we heard about those services.”

Thanks to COPE, Vin received his first orthotic devices and physiotherapy training. The mobile clinic saved him and his parents a lot of time, as he was able to get his orthotic devices adjusted near home.