Her mother told me that she was going to change Elsayed's birthday to the day the surgery was performed. "She's starting her new life today," she said.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Recovery
Elsayed is recovering! In just two days, she'll be able to go home. Below is a picture of her mother who is crying tears of happiness.
Her mother told me that she was going to change Elsayed's birthday to the day the surgery was performed. "She's starting her new life today," she said.
Her mother told me that she was going to change Elsayed's birthday to the day the surgery was performed. "She's starting her new life today," she said.
Meet the Mayor
This is our anesthesiologist Stan Brauer. In his other life, he is the mayor of Loma Linda. Glad to have you with us Stan.
Going Under the Knife
Today was our first day of surgery.
This is Mohamed Ahmed Elsayed. She’s about a year and a half old, weighs 4.5 kilos and she won’t be able to survive without a heart surgery.
She is a Tetrology patient, so, she has a specific genetic disorder in regards to the structure of the heart. It’s a combination of four defects. The first issue is that there is a hole in her heart and Dr. Bailey has to patch this hole. The second issue is that the aorta, or main blood vessel, is in the wrong position and has to be fixed for the blood to flow normally. Third, the ventricle, or the muscle that pumps the heart is abnormally developed. And finally, there’s a narrowing of the arteries that take the blood to the lungs. All of these things have to be successfully repaired in order for the patient to make a full recovery and it’s about a five-hour procedure.
Throughout the next few weeks, we’re going to be doing more Tetrology cases than any other because it’s one of the most common defects. But most importantly, the Heart Surgery Team is trying to teach the Egyptian Heart Surgery Team to repair the particular defect. When we leave, hopefully they’ll be able to perform the procedure on their own.
As with any heart procedure, the doctor has to cut through the chest and ribcage. It’s dangerous and you never quite know exactly how the patient is going to react. But today, things went beautifully.
When she first came in, her fingertips were blue because her heart wasn’t strong enough to circulate her blood properly. But now, after a few days, hopefully life will be a little different for Elsayed.
We just have to wait for now.
This is Mohamed Ahmed Elsayed. She’s about a year and a half old, weighs 4.5 kilos and she won’t be able to survive without a heart surgery.
She is a Tetrology patient, so, she has a specific genetic disorder in regards to the structure of the heart. It’s a combination of four defects. The first issue is that there is a hole in her heart and Dr. Bailey has to patch this hole. The second issue is that the aorta, or main blood vessel, is in the wrong position and has to be fixed for the blood to flow normally. Third, the ventricle, or the muscle that pumps the heart is abnormally developed. And finally, there’s a narrowing of the arteries that take the blood to the lungs. All of these things have to be successfully repaired in order for the patient to make a full recovery and it’s about a five-hour procedure.
Throughout the next few weeks, we’re going to be doing more Tetrology cases than any other because it’s one of the most common defects. But most importantly, the Heart Surgery Team is trying to teach the Egyptian Heart Surgery Team to repair the particular defect. When we leave, hopefully they’ll be able to perform the procedure on their own.
As with any heart procedure, the doctor has to cut through the chest and ribcage. It’s dangerous and you never quite know exactly how the patient is going to react. But today, things went beautifully.
When she first came in, her fingertips were blue because her heart wasn’t strong enough to circulate her blood properly. But now, after a few days, hopefully life will be a little different for Elsayed.
We just have to wait for now.
The Wonder Drug
Milrinone is a drug that is vital to the heart surgery process. It is a dilator, which supports the heart and enables it to pump stronger. For many children, it can mean life or death. But for some reason, hospitals in Egypt don’t have it.
So we brought our own. A BIG thank you to all those who donated medical supplies. It’s really making a difference.
So we brought our own. A BIG thank you to all those who donated medical supplies. It’s really making a difference.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Diary entry #2
Choosing the Patients
We're here in Egypt for two weeks, which seems like a long time-but yesterday, after seeing the hallway jammed with parents and sick kids, I realized that it wasn't long enough.We weren't going to be able to help everyone.
We could only pick the most urgent cases. The children who were going to die immediately were moved up the front of the line and the kids who would be able to make it another couple of years were put toward the end. There were some that didn't make it on the list at all and it was really hard to see the patients walk away. We just don't have enough time to help everyone.
But that's why Dr. Bailey and the rest of the team are training the Egyptian hospital personnel. When we leave, hopefully they'll be able to take over and save the kids we aren't able to do. Dr. Aijaz Hashmi explains how we chose our cases for the next two weeks.
Dr. Aijaz Hashmi
Pediatric Cardiologist
The first day was spent screening a hall full of children with congenital heart defects.
Each child was seen with his parent and all their investigation including echocardiogram and cardiac catheterization data, were reviewed in a conference setting with the cardiac surgeon, the anesthesiologists, the Egyptian doctors in training, and myself.
We were able to accept most of the presenting children for surgical correction. A complete repair is anticipated for all the selected children such that they will be restored to a normal cardiac physiology allowing them to grow and develop normally and fully participate in physical activities.
Unfortunately, some children were declined because their condition had advanced to a stage where surgical correction was no longer an option. Recommendations were made to improve their medical management.
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