To say thank you, a gift from Baghdad

Yesterday, he presented it as a sign of his gratitude to the doctors and nurses at a Lexington pediatrics practice who have befriended and supported his family during the past five years.

“It was a way to say thank you to them for all the care they provided to the family while I was gone,’’ said Long, 37, who returned to the United States in May after six and a half months in Iraq, rejoining his wife, Jody, and two children.

The couple’s younger son, Ryan, was born with tuberous sclerosis, a rare genetic disorder that inhibits the body’s ability to regulate cell growth in several organs. Ryan had a tumor in his heart and dozens in his brain.

Born May 26, 2004, in Waco, Texas, where Long was then stationed, Ryan underwent heart surgery 16 days later. Within weeks, Long, who had been reassigned to Hanscom Air Force Base, and his family were to leave for Boston.

They arrived at Logan Airport with seven suitcases and many worries. No one could say how the disease would affect their son.

“We were coming with this really complicated baby,’’ said Jody Long, 34. “Here we were in this strange place 2,000 miles away from home.’’

Even before the Longs settled into their home at the base, they met with an array of doctors - a neurologist, a cardiologist, a nephrologist, an occupational physical therapist.

And they met Julie B. Dollinger, who would become Ryan’s primary care physician at Lexington Pediatrics, a group practice provider for US Family Health Plan, a nonprofit healthcare plan for military families.

At the time, the severity of Ryan’s disease was unknown, though the Longs knew his brain tumors could cause seizures and developmental delays. The uncertainty was agonizing, often unbearable.

An experienced pediatrician, Dollinger stepped in, reassuring them they would meet any challenges that came their way.

“ ‘I said, ‘If he had his first seizure here on the table, you can just turn around and call 911,’ ’’ Dollinger recalled.

When the seizure finally came, on Aug. 26, 2004, Dollinger visited Jody in the emergency room at Children’s Hospital Boston, to remind her everything would be fine.

“She didn’t have to. She just made the effort to come by and check on us,’’ Jody Long said. “Honestly, it meant the world to me.’’

Since then, Ryan has had seizures regularly, often more than 30 times a day. They originate in various parts of his brain and are almost impossible to control with medication. Ten seconds. Ten minutes. One lasted three hours and left him quivering, convulsing, struggling for the next breath.

“You go from running and playing to he’s on life support at night,’’ Jody said. “That’s our life.’’

Dollinger coordinates Ryan’s treatments, serves as a link between the specialists overseeing his case, and explains complex medical concepts to the Longs. For her, receiving the flag is a humbling privilege, she said.

“For civilians it’s a very special thing to know that our servicemen, who are doing such dangerous work overseas, are taking the time to think about us,’’ Dollinger said.

US Family Health Plan honored Long’s service to the country and his family’s courage during yesterday’s ceremony at Lexington Pediatrics.

The Longs’ friendship with Dollinger grew alongside Ryan’s disease. They discovered a shared love for Mexican food and took their children to the park together. Dollinger entertains Ryan and his older brother, Cameron, 9, with stories of paper airplanes and meat-eating frogs.

Jody Long has put together a blue scrapbook for Ryan, chronicling in pictures and words his short but eventful life. Halloweens and birthdays, visits to festivals and fairs, frequent trips to doctors’ clinics and emergency rooms.

Pictures of Ryan eating ice cream straight from a carton and spilling yogurt on himself are interspersed with those of him in hospital beds, electrodes protruding from his scalp and intravenous needles puncturing his tiny hands.

But Ryan is as healthy as his disease permits him to be. He jumps on the trampoline until he is exhausted. He plays with water pistols, falls, gets wet and dirty, and keeps smiling.

When asked how he is doing, his eyes light up. When asked what his shirt reads, he giggles, displaying several missing milk teeth. His speech is slightly slurred, but those who know him understand him.

Recently, the Longs asked Dollinger to be one of the guardians of a trust fund for Ryan. Though they are moving to Ohio this month, they would like to stay in touch. Dollinger said she would be honored.

Nandini Jayakrishna can be reached at njayakrishna@globe.com.