EDMONTON — The same technology that brought Gollum to life in the movie Lord of the Rings is helping an Alberta boy stand on his own two feet.
Quinn Kozlowski, 6, who suffers from cerebral palsy, could have faced years of complicated surgeries to help him walk.
But thanks to the "gait lab" at Edmonton's Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital's Syncrude Centre for Motion and Balance, he's standing tall again.
The lab uses eight cameras and high-tech scales to create a computerized image of a patient's skeleton and muscles prior to surgery. It gives doctors a clearer picture of what surgeries are needed to correct a movement problem.
Based on the information doctors got from his gait tests, Quinn had his hip adductors and hamstrings lengthened.
His mother, Karen Kozlowski, says to get his balance off, Quinn would have to bend his knees and his back.
Now she says knees aren't bent when he's standing, adding he stands very straight and takes longer steps.
