Avery

Avery is a very happy little boy living with a rare genetic gastrointestinal disease called microvillus inclusion disease. He is absolutely in love with animals and waves hello to them any chance he gets, is very smart, he knows where his hair, ear, nose, and teeth are, and is still progressing. Avery has been through so much at such a young age in the struggle of trying to find out what exactly was wrong and why he kept getting dehydrated and not absorbing anything that was going into him. At such a young age (3 months old) he received an electron microscopy which told us that he had this disease, as well as genetic testing. Although he has this disease, nothing holds Avery back. He is extremely vocal, screams with excitement all the time and is always smiling, unless you are a nurse of course!

~Stephanie, Avery’s Mom

Microvillus Inclusion Disease

Microvillus inclusion disease is an extremely rare inherited intestinal disorder that is typically apparent within hours or days after birth. The disorder is characterized by chronic, severe, watery diarrhea, and insufficient absorption of necessary nutrients due to incomplete development and/or degeneration of certain cells of the wall of the small intestine. In infants with microvillus inclusion disease, chronic diarrhea and malabsorption may result in severe dehydration, deficiency of necessary nutrients, a failure to grow and gain weight at the expected rate, and/or disturbance of the body's balance of acids and bases, which is essential in regulating the body's composition of bodily fluids. Microvillus inclusion disease is inherited as an autosomal recessive genetic trait.

Artist: Dimitry Gritsenko