A 10-year-old girl in Binh Phuoc Province is going through a double struggle with poverty and complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS).

 Ly cannot bend her leg

The family of Nguyen Thi Truc Ly is poor, so the local authorities have helped them build a small house. Ly's mother, Ngo Thi Mai, then planted potatoes in order to save on meal expenses. Ly's father does odd jobs to earn money but he cannot do heavy work because of spondylosis and sciatica.

Ly would often help her mother do housework and sell lottery tickets after school. "I go to the markets, coffee bars and restaurants. Each day I can sell around 50 or 60 tickets," she said. On a busy day, they can afford to buy some meat to add to their meals.

At first, Ly only felt a leg pain. When the pain became unbearable, Ly was admitted to a provincial hospital and transferred to Cardiology Department of Children's Hospital 2 by the end of October.

"Ly has complex regional pain syndrome. She feels so much pain because of damage to her peripheral nerves and central nervous systems. The causes are varied. It could come from stress, infection or some trauma to that limb, so we are using both drugs and psychotherapy. This illness is costly because of the expensive drugs and long-term treatment. Also patients of this illness are not able to benefit from the health insurance fund." the doctor said.

 Suffering from leg pain

Ly's mother feels helpless. "I'm worried sick about the daily expenses at home, the drug costs and my daughter's health. I can't do anything when she cries in pain. I just wish I could take away that pain for her."

Despite the pain, Ly still brings books to hospital to study for the exams and earns good marks. "She is a hard-working girl and always tries to go to class. She is good at both math and literature," Ly's teacher said. "Her house consists of one large room for daily activities and a kitchen. Without any chairs and tables, all the family members sleep together on the floor."

According to psychiatrist Kieu Thanh Ha, Ly is also worried about poverty and the fact that she may have to drop out. As a result her condition got worse. "I think her situation will improve if she is encouraged," Ha said.

Ly said she often wakes up early to do housework because her mother is not in good health either. "I hope the doctors will be able cure me so I can continue selling lottery tickets to help my family."

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