Wisdom Heart

Hi everyone.
I have posted some pictures on the last two posts.
Here are the details I know so far regarding Sophia.
As I stated in previous posts, the goal of the surgery yesterday was to take down the B-T Shunt, unifocalize the multiple aorto-pulmonary collateral arteries (MAPCAs), place a right ventricle to pulmonary artery conduit, and close or reduce the VSD.

The shunt was removed no problem. There was a little scarring they had to deal with to get to it but it was successful. Of the MAPCAs there were a few that had grown quite substantially. They were successfully brought together and joined to the pulmonary artery. I think the surgeon said he even managed to successfully join one that was only 1mm diameter.

The RV to PA conduit was also done successfully.

The VSD was neither reduced or closed. Here is why.

The last cardiac catheterization revealed substantial growth in the PAs. What it did not reveal, was the vessels entering the lungs were still very small. This creates a sort of bottleneck which does not allow the amount of blood the heart pumps to easily enter the lungs. As a result, the VSD had to be left open to relieve stress the right ventricle would experience which could cause it to fail. By not closing the VSD, not only will it be necessary to have a future surgery to do so, but Sophia will still have less than optimum blood oxygen saturation.
At this point, we do not know what will happen regarding this situation and are focused on her recovery. But basically the pulmonary vessels will need to grow or be opened via cardiac cath at a later time.

Lastly, Sophia's chest was not closed after surgery. This is because there is a possibility of swelling that could impair the function of the heart and lungs. It should be closed in the next day or so in her PICU room.

This is what I know so far. I will continue to post short updates as I am able. I will post photos to the Flickr! page, when I am able to get home. There are a few there now.

Thanks to all who have supported us through this. Please send us emails and comments.
Thanks-Michael