'He's Smart, Feisty': Parents Speak Out About Son's Dwarfism

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DUBLIN, CA — In January 2015, Maria Bronnikov had just given birth to her son Matthew following a perfectly normal pregnancy, but upon his arrival the baby was suddenly rushed to the intensive care unit at John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek.

Maria and her husband, Dennis Bronnikov, were shocked.

But it turned out that the doctors immediately knew something that was later confirmed by genetic tests: baby Matthew had been born a Little Person and suffered from achondroplasia, the most common form of dwarfism.

Nearly three years later, the couple, who live in Dublin, are speaking out about their son's condition and how it has changed their lives, as well as that of their older son, 5-year-old William, who's of average height for a child of his age.

Achondroplasia, a rare disease that's pronounced acron-da-plesia, isn’t typically inherited, and Maria and Dennis said the doctors couldn't pinpoint how Matthew developed it.

"This condition doesn't run in either of our families, it came as a surprise," Dennis said. "Matthew had a random occurring mutation that basically causes the disease."

"Most of the 'Little Persons' are being born in families with average-height parents," Maria said.

The family has lived in Dublin for a couple of months after having moved from nearby Pleasanton. Dennis and Maria are both from Russia, but have lived in the Bay Area for about three years.

"There are some things he can do that other kids his age are doing and there some things he cannot do for anatomical reasons. Because dwarfism is not only about the height, it's about the proportions. All his limbs are shorter compared to his body. There are some things he cannot do physically, but I feel that mentally he is so far beyond the average kid. He's asking questions that my 5-year-old doesn't ask me. It might be some kind of mental compensation. He's a very smart person, and very feisty, very strong."

Maria said that William is very protective of his younger brother and that he's always been very supportive.

"I don't feel that William really knows that Matthew is really different and special, but we're trying to educate him," she said.

Dennis, who works in the health care industry, said that although Matthew does look different than the average kid due to his proportions, he's learning to compensate.

"He's a very smart and musically talented kid," he said.

Maria said that she and her husband decided to speak out about their son's condition in part because her family has received so much support from many groups and individuals, including Little People of America, a non-profit that provides support, resources and information to people with dwarfism and their families.

"Hearing people's stories and seeing that life is not ending and it's okay and you can deal with it ... it was very, very helpful. I just wanna support other people, that's all," she said. "We are happy to be connected."

"There's all kinds of moral and other types of support available," Dennis added. "We grew a much bigger appreciation for the community that we're blessed to be connected to now."

"It might sound corny, but there's a blessing in anything that occurs," he said. "We feel very privileged to have welcomed Matthew into the world."

Photos courtesy of the Bronnikov family

This story was made possible by the support of Dublin Patch members. Want to support more local coverage of Dublin? Click here to learn more.