TARRANT COUNTY — Jeffrey Strother, 22, is unable to walk or talk, but you would be hard pressed to find a time when he isn't smiling.
Just ask his mom, Renee Sherrod.
"He is probably the sweetest, most loving child I've ever met in my life," she said.
Strother, now a senior at Azle High School, was diagnosed with microcephaly when he was just three weeks old. The disorder means he has a smaller than average head because his brain virtually stopped growing, according to his doctors.
Microcephaly patient Jeffrey Strother with his mother, Renee Sherrod. (WFAA)
"I do everything for him. I feed him; I change him; he's almost like a one-year-old baby," Sherrod said.
Strother suffers from seizures and developmental delays.
His case was brought on by a mosquito carrying the West Nile virus after he was born, but other viruses — like Zika — can cause microcephaly, too.
Microcephaly can occur anytime during the development of a child's brain, whether in the womb or after birth.
Doctors at Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth say the disorder is uncommon, but it's not as rare as you might think.
It affects about 25,000 infants in the U.S. each year, according to the website for theFoundation for Children with Microcephaly.
"The concern when you see kids with microcephaly is the brain is not developing or growing properly," said Dr. Warren Marks, Strother's pediatric neurologist.
Marks helps children living with microcephaly reach their full potential as they grow older.
"For some children, it's going to be a matter of helping them with adaptive school programs or adaptive equipment," he explained.
The disorder has a range of effects — from minor forms of learning disabilities to mental retardation or cerebral palsy.
For Strother and Sherrod, some days can be challenging, but Sherrod wouldn't have it any other way.
"I couldn't imagine not having him like this. This to me is just amazing. He amazes me every day," Sherrod said.
