A 13-year-old boy , whose mystery illness bound him to a wheelchair with a feeding tube , has made a miraculous recovery after years of suffering thanks to his determined mother who scoured the internet for answers as to why he was in excruciating pain . According to the Today show , Bobby Leithauser , from Marco Island , Florida , was originally diagnosed with dysautonomia , a malfunction in the autonomic nervous system , and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome , a tissue disorder - but the conditions did n't account for all of his ailments , which included stomach afflictions , loss of vision and agonizing neck pain . Refusing to accept her son ’ s initial diagnosis , Bobby 's mom , Keri Leithauser , began researching his symptoms online , and came across the work of Dr. Harold Rekate , a neurosurgeon at the Cohen Children 's Medical Center in New York , who soon discovered her son had a Chiari malformation , a treatable , yet rare condition that affects the cerebellum , the part of the brain that controls balance . Scroll down for video . Miraculous discovery : Bobby Leithauser , 13 , suffered from a painful mystery illness for years before being diagnosed with a Chiari malformation , a rare condition that affects the part of the brain that controls balance . Needing a cure : Bobby 's parents , Keri and Tom Keri Leithauser , explained that their son started having crippling stomach pain when he was only nine-years-old , requiring him to have a feeding tube . Last December , Dr Rekate operated on Bobby , performing a surgery that he had invented , to fix the condition which cause his spine to press into his brain . Three months later , Bobby recalled the days after his surgery , saying he 'could n't believe ' his unbearable pain was gone after years of suffering . The teen 's health problems seemingly came out of nowhere when he was only nine years old , when the once-active child began to experience crippling stomach pain , prompting his parents to start limiting his food to the point that he was only consuming blueberries and chicken . But despite their best efforts , his ailments continued . Next came headaches , tremors and an inability to control his body temperature or regulate his blood pressure . But even after Bobby was diagnosed with dysautonomia and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome , his physical suffering continued . Difficult prognosis : Bobby , who was active as a boy , found himself bound to a wheelchair after his condition worsened . 'It was really horrendous pain and I could n't hold my head up for more than 10 minutes at a time , ' Bobby explained . As his condition worsened , his worried mom began doing research on the internet and contacted other parents whose children had similar issues . Chiari malformations are caused by structural defects in the brain and spinal cord . Symptoms include dizziness , muscle weakness , numbness , vision problems , headaches and problems with balance and coordination . Chiari malformations mostly occur during fetal development , although they may develop later in life after injury , infection or exposure to toxic substances . It was once believed that Chiari malformations occurred in only one in every 1,000 births , but research shows that they appear to be more common . Babies who are born with Chiari malformations do n't develop symptoms until adolescence or adulthood - if they develop them at all . ' I started putting the pieces of the puzzles together , ' she said . Her husband Tom noted that because their son 's issues started with severe abdominal pain , they found themselves focused on the wrong area of his body . 'The whole time we were looking at stomach pain , never imagining that the problem could be in another part of his body , like the brain , ' he said . Mrs Leithauser 's determination to cure her son eventually brought her family to Dr. Rekate . As soon as the neurosurgeon saw scans of the boy 's skull and spine , he immediately knew what was wrong . The scan revealed that Bobby 's skull and spine were not held together properly because the ligaments were too loose . The misalignment was causing his brain to be squeezed from the front and the back . ' I knew that he could be helped by surgery , ' Dr Rekate said . ' I knew that the chronic pain that he was in , that the inability to exercise could be helped , that we could change his life . ' Bobby is now walking again , and his chronic pain and headaches are gone as expected . But what is even more surprising is that the issues associated with his autonomic nervous system suddenly started to get better as well . 'To me , it 's a miracle . It really is a miracle , ' Mr Leithauser said . Magical surgeon : Dr Harold Rekate explained that Bobby 's skull and spine were n't hooked together properly , which caused his spine to push into his brain . Fast recovery : Three months ago , Bobby had surgery to properly align his skull and his spine , which improved all of his ailments and allowed him to start walking again .
Bobby Leithauser , from Marco Island , Florida , started experiencing crippling stomach pain when he was Three months . As his mysterious condition worsened , he was put in a wheelchair , given a feeding tube and started experiencing vision loss in addition to his pain . His mom Keri ’ s research led the family to Dr. Harold Rekate , a neurosurgeon in New York who diagnosed the teen with a rare brain condition . only nine years old after surgery , Bobby is making a full recovery .