Young man recovers from rare diabetic disease that left him paralyzed from the waist down with rehabilitation therapy at Jackson North

By: Krysten Brenlla

Originally from Romania, Hunor Vajda, 20, loves hiking, playing video games, drawing, and connecting with friends. He was living his dream as a college student studying data science at the University of Florida.

However, the life he knew drastically changed when Vajda started feeling extreme weakness in his legs and other symptoms that were indicative of diabetes.

“I was sustaining high blood sugar for a long time, I constantly felt weakness in my body, and I suffered from dry mouth,” Vajda said. “At that time, I was on a diet, and was cutting out sugar and processed food, until I went back to school in Gainesville, where the symptoms got worse.”

On October 11, 2022, Vajda made an emergency trip to a Gainesville hospital to treat his worsening diabetes symptoms.

Upon discharge, the weakness in his legs was unmanageable. He could no longer walk, and required a wheelchair to get around.

“By November, I was back in the emergency room because I could no longer move my body from the waist down – I could feel my legs, but I couldn’t move anything; it was a weird sensation,” Vajda said. “I was basically paralyzed.”

In addition to his diabetes, Vajda was also diagnosed with acute flaccid myelitis, a rare neurological condition that affects the spinal cord’s gray matter area, causing the muscles and reflexes in the body to become weak.

To regain the muscle movements in his legs, Vajda required intense rehabilitation therapy. He stayed in Gainesville for several months before he was transferred to Jackson North Medical Center in March 2023, where he met his team of physical therapists that pushed him toward recovery.

“When I did my original evaluation, my goals were very low,” said Sabrina Cherelus, a licensed physical therapist at Jackson North. “Due to the way Hunor presented on initial evaluation, I was not expecting that he would return to walking without an assisted device; he had extensive weakness of his legs.”

When Vajda first arrived to Jackson North, he required  a lot of help when performing day-to-day tasks, including standing. However, he slowly began to show signs of increased leg function with small kicks and movements in his toes.

By week eight, Vajda quickly improved.

“I went from being wheelchair bound to barely needing a cane,” he said. “With the help from my therapists and my family at home, I started to take a few steps, I was able to stand for longer periods of time, and pushed more weight, which really motivated me throughout my journey.”

To help Vajda walk again, his physical therapy team at Jackson North used Maxi Sky technology, a supportive system for regaining walking and balancing skills. Using a harness, the technology provides support as patients practice walking, balancing, climbing stairs, and sit-to-stand maneuvers. It also senses sudden changes in the body’s position, lowering the patient down from the harness gently and safely, with no risk of falling.

“If patients are afraid that they will fall, then they are not as willing to walk,” Cherelus said. “However, Hunor hit the ground running. Despite each challenge, he met every goal.”

In addition to the Maxi Sky technology therapies, the team incorporated patient specific recreational activities into Vajda’s sessions, such as soccer, to help with his coordination.

After three months of hard work, Vajda’s leg function improved drastically.

“The best thing we can do as therapists is educate and encourage patients to keep up with their therapies and exercises, and to stay active,” Cherelus said. “My hope for Hunor is that he can continue to live his own, independent life, while being an advocate for the benefits of physical therapy.”

Today, Vajda is completely independent – he is able to stand on his own; walks without an assistive device; and continues to practice his rehabilitation therapy at home.

He’s returned to Gainesville for the fall semester, where he hopes to enjoy hikes, meet new friends, and continue studying.

“To the Jackson North team: thank you for pushing me so hard, and for working with me so well,” Vajda said.

“It was seeing their excitement whenever I made any progress that helped me get to where I’m at today.”