My Heart Problem
Home
My Journal
My Heart Problem
Before any surgery
1st surgery
My docs & nurses
Dr. Zahn Consult
Dr. Hannan Consult
Zach & Friends
Christmas 2004
7 months old
9 months old
10 months
2nd surgery
12 months old
My First Birthday
October 2005
Christmas 2005
Links
Sign Guestbook
 

 

 These are the details on my heart condition
 

This is what my heart looked like when I was born.  My right ventricle didn't grow and couldn't get enough blood to my lungs to give oxygen to my body.

 

  I have Hypoplastic right heart syndrome (HRHS) which is an underdevelopment of the right side of the heart. These effects cause inadequate blood flow to the lungs. I am what is called a "blue baby". I have a very small (hypoplastic) right ventricle (lower chamber which normally pumps blood to the lungs) and small tricuspid and pulmonary valves (these valves allows blood to flow into and out of the right ventricle).

    Because the blue blood cannot pass through the right side of the heart to get to my lungs it mixes with red blood returning from my lungs. This mixed blood is pumped into my body. The only way in which blood gets to the lungs is through the an opening that all babies have before they are born. This opening usually closes shortly after birth but mine was kept open with medications.  After that I had surgery to create a permanent path for blood to get to my lungs.  This surgery was the BT Shunt which is described below.

 

This is how they fixed my heart in the first stage of my surgeries.

 
Friends with Hypoplastic Right Heart that were not with us long enough:

In loving memory of Joanie Allen, friend to all, 05/26/78 - 10/10/04

In loving memory of Angelina Cheney, daughter of Lisa and Eldon, 10/19/04-10/19/04

In loving memory of Allison Arnold, daughter of Kimberly and Steve, guardian angel to brother Zan 09/09/04 - 11/04/04

In loving memory of Millie Taylor, daughter of Jackie and Steve, 02/15/05 - 02/21/05

In loving memory of Caitlyn Pittman, daughter of Marissa and Chris, 09/10/04 - 03/08/05

In loving memory of Olivia McLoone 04/20/04 - 05/14/05  Beloved daughter of JoAnne and sister to Mark

 

"If love could save them, they would all live forever".

Support research funding for Congenital Heart Defects."
Click Here To Help

The bidirectional Glenn is the next surgery I will be having on July 26, 2005. 

 

During this procedure, I will be placed under general anesthesia, and special monitoring IVs will be put in. They enter my chest through the sternum (breastbone). The heart/lung machine is then connected to pump blood through my body during the surgery. Any procedure that needs to be done inside my heart is then carried out while my heart is empty and stopped. The superior vena cava (the main blood vessel returning the dark, unoxygenated blood from the head and the upper body) is divided and connected to the pulmonary artery. The BT shunt I received during my last surgery is closed off.  My heart is then allowed to resume its normal function. Appropriate temporary pacemaker wires and drains are placed in my heart in case I need them and  my chest is closed. Zach will be allowed to awaken after about 6 hours and hopefully, taken off the respirator. Oxygen blood levels do not reach normal levels after this surgery, since all the blood from the inferior vena cava (all the blood returning from below the diaphragm) is still mixing with the oxygenated blood within my heart. The procedure does allow the superior vena cava blood, which represents approximately 40% of the blood volume, to flow passively through the lung. This change diminishes the workload of my heart. My surgeon and cardiologist are hopeful that this will be enough for me and I won't need another surgery after this.  We won't know for sure until I'm bigger and we see how my heart does.