A 73-year-old doctor from the United States has won the respect and appreciation of local residents after he returned to China to treat children with cerebral palsy. He did so at a time when the country had been hit hard by the coronavirus.

David P. Roye Jr., a pediatric orthopedic specialist from Columbia University Medical Center in New York City, said he hoped he would be able to help alleviate problems for more Chinese children through the establishment of high-standard multidisciplinary center for cerebral palsy supported by a dedicated financial endowment in China in coming years, Guangzhou Daily reported.

Roye, who was in Tokyo, planned to head back to the US but took a detour to Beijing on Feb 20, with more than a dozen suitcases filled with face masks. He changed his plans when many direct flights between China and the US were being suspended.

Roye told his relatives and friends that he would spend most of his time in China this year.

It was Roye's 79th visit to China in 23 years. He has operated on hundreds of Chinese children with cerebral palsy over more than two decades.

He was first invited to visit China in 1997 to visit a children's welfare home in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, and to examine local children with cerebral palsy.

"I thought that I would return to China, as there are so many children who need my help," he told news media.

Roye has been employed as a medical expert by Shantou University's Guangzhou Huaxin Orthaopedic Hospital since May. He mainly treats children with cerebral palsy.

"I want to do something to help the cerebral palsy children in China," he said.

China has seen rapid progress in medical treatments in recent years and has advanced technologies and medical personnel to treat various orthopedic diseases. Some of his Chinese colleagues are top doctors, Roye said. He added that he thought China lacks only a few concepts and modes of interdisciplinary collaboration.

Currently, Roye lives in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, and is commonly known as "Uncle Luo" among Chinese children.