Jazlynn, born 2015

We brought our 1 month old daughter to the emergency room because of rapid breathing. We were told that she might have pneumonia. We were immediately transferred to Neonatal ICU where the doctors saw her enlarged heart but they were not sure if it was myocarditis or cardiomyopathy. The pediatric cardiologist there told us that she needed some strong medicines to treat her condition because whether it is myocarditis or cardiomyopathy the treatment is still the same. For 2 weeks we stayed in the NICU, hoping the medicines and all the tests will make her heart back to normal size. But we knew something was not right when the doctor told us that my baby will still be needing 5-7 medicines at home and she might need to take them all for the rest of her life. On top of the IVs and oral medicines that were already been given to her in the NICU. So we decided to transfer her to a new doctor who immediately diagnosed her with ALCAPA. She had her successful heart surgery after 2 days of being diagnosed. Now, she is 6 months old and recovering beautifully. She is scheduled for her follow-up second echo test next month. We are so grateful everyday for our miracle baby.

 

Story by Jennifer, mom to Jazlynn – Philippines