WHEN little Charlotte Wakefield was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, her parents resigned themselves to the fact that her life would be full of restrictions.

But the three-year-old from Corfe Mullen could soon be running around with her friends after life-changing surgery in America.

Charlotte’s mum Kim, 38, first heard about the operation, called selective dorsal rhizotomy, on GMTV several weeks ago and has since been researching the procedure for her daughter.

“They said ‘A little boy can walk after an operation’, but when they said it was cerebral palsy I was straight on the phone to my mum,” she said.

“It was a thought for hope. But then it said his mum had spent about £40,000. You think ‘Oh my God, how are we going to find that sort of money?’ “Also, you’ve got to find out about it because you just don’t know – every child is different.”

Kim emailed the hospital – St Louis Hospital in Missouri – asking them for more information and had a response within 24 hours, asking her to send a spinal and hip x-ray, MRI scan and video footage of Charlotte so they could assess her.

All the relevant information was sent off to the American hospital last week and Kim was delighted to get a quick response.

“They emailed me on Tuesday and said it would take a week or so, so I thought ‘I’ve got to stop thinking about it’. Then two days later, on Thursday, they said she was a suitable candidate.

“So the next step was asking when we could go. They emailed me dates and said they could do December, but didn’t know whether that would be convenient because of Christmas.”

But Kim and her husband Steve, 45, were both in agreement that Charlotte should have the operation as soon as possible and are now busy organising flights and accommodation for their month-long stay in Missouri.

Charlotte currently uses a walker to get around, but the hospital is confident the procedure will mean she can walk flat-footed with her right foot, as well as participate in sports and recreational activities with her friends.

“My understanding is they go to the bottom of the spine and cut the nerves that are causing the spasticity in the legs,” said Kim.

“It’s not a miracle cure, we are fully aware of that. It’s major surgery and she will be in intensive care afterwards and she might need some orthopaedic surgery later at some point with her left foot.

“But all the emails that we’ve had from parents here have been so positive and have said we’ve got to get it done.”

Kim and Steve have been given an estimate for the operation, physio and hospital care of 44,000-50,000 US dollars so are now frantically trying to get the money together with help from family and friends.

“We will be using any savings we have, because we haven’t got that amount of money,” said Kim.

“We would have fundraised, but I just feel we haven’t got the time now. We would have done anything to get it done, even if we have to borrow the money, even if it meant re-mortgaging the house.

“We will be there for Christmas and New Year, but it will be worth it and we feel it will be the best Christmas present we can ever give her.”

* If you can help Kim and Steve, or want to find out more about the operation, email Kim at kimedwards18@hotmail.com.