My son's aortic stenosis
By Amy Reed (Nathan's mom)
Our first child, Nathan, was born seemingly healthy in 2003. The day after he was born, our pediatrician noticed a heart murmur and that it sounded louder than they would expect. We were fortunate that he was born at Northwest Community hospital where Nathan received an echocardiogram (echo), which is an ultrasound of the heart.
After a teleconference with Dr. Catherine Webb at Children's Memorial, it was determined that Nathan had a heart defect that needed immediate attention. He was taken to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Northwest Community and prepared for transport to Children’s Memorial. This was a very difficult time as we had no idea that he was born with any problems and he was also our first child. The transport staff was excellent and even took a picture of us with him as they prepared to transport him to the hospital. My husband was even allowed to travel with them to the hospital.
Once in the NICU at Children's Memorial, he was diagnosed with critical aortic stenosis. The nurses were so caring and helpful that first night when my husband was with Nathan in the hospital and I was at home, having just been released from the local hospital. They answered all his questions and were so caring when I called from home to check on Nathan in the middle of the night.
The next day, Nathan underwent a balloon valvuloplasty. The procdeure went well. However, he had some other issues that had him in the hospital for two weeks. The doctors, nurses and staff members were so helpful during this difficult time.
Nathan was released and had regular check-ups to monitor his condition. About a year and a half later his doctor determined that it was time for surgery to repair the valve. He had his first open heart surgery in 2005. Again, his medical team was excellent and caring. The surgery went well and his repair was expected to last about three years.
Nathan is now 5 and his repair is still holding. Although he does face more open heart surgery in the future. Currently, we are able to take advantage of the outpatient center at Northwest Community Hospital for his echos and doctor appointments. This is so helpful for us as it is now a 20 minute drive to his appointments instead of a drive of at least an hour and a half. We have been so appreciative of the excellent care he received that Nathan collected books to donate to the "other kids who had a lot of doctor appointments" at his last birthday party.
Thanks, Children's Memorial, for all that you do for kids and their families.
Children's Memorial Hospital seeks philanthropic funding to enhance
its programs and services. As a proud partner of the Children's Miracle
Network (CMN), all funds raised in the Chicago area through CMN also
benefit Children's Memorial. To find out how your support can help the
hospital better serve children and families, please contact the
Children's Memorial Foundation at 773.880.4237 or Foundation@childrensmemorial.org.
Last updated February 2009