“She was doing the army crawl. It was almost as if she didn’t realize she had anything from the hips down,” said Dave Merrill upon observing her six-month old daughter: Cassie Merrill.

Whereas most babies would already be sitting up and walking at six months, Carrie had complications. She was unable to take her first independent steps until she was three years old. And at 7 years old, she was diagnosed with spastic diplegic cerebral palsy.

Doctors recommended Botox injections to alleviate her rigid muscles. These injections combined with physical therapy and leg braces enabled Cassie to walk alone.

Last October, a breakthrough occurred—a new surgical treatment. “The operation,” writes Frank Radosevich II from GateHouse News Service,  “of which only a handful have been done in Peoria, involves selectively cutting some nerve fibers running through the spinal cord to reduce spasticity — the increased tension that tightens and shortens muscles. By turning certain nerves permanently ‘off,’ the operation relieves tension in the legs and improves a patient’s ability to walk.”

Cassie was one of the first ones to undergo the treatment. And the results have been very promising.

In this case, Botox played a crucial medical role. The renowned cosmetic treatment gave Cassie time to wait for science. And when the right time came, Cassie was more than ready for the breakthrough treatment.

Just goes to show, things that are made for vanity aren’t always for vanity.