Pulling
on Your
Heartstrings
strings
Advances in medicine and
open heart surgery saved the life of
18-month-old Harper Mae Hutchinson.
By Tracey Fedkoe
Y
ou’d never know that typical toddler Harper Mae Hutchinson,
who has an infectious smile and loves to be the center of
attention, didn’t start out as a healthy strong baby. Even before
she was born, her parents, Rachel (Keenan)Hutchinson of
Mt. Lebanon, and Chris Hutchinson of Bethel Park, knew their baby
had a heart defect. A sonogram followed by prenatal echocardiogram
discovered that Harper had a large Ventrical Septal Defect (VSD), which
is a hole in the wall separating the two lower chambers of the heart that
causes the heart and lungs to work much harder.
She was born on August 8, 2012, and the VSD was confirmed
along with an additional heart defect called Stenosis of the Pulmonary
Valve—a terrifying diagnosis for first-time parents. The Hutchinsons
did get to take her home with the slim possibility that her heart may heal
itself, but knew that open-heart surgery may be needed. Her doctors
wanted to wait until at least 12 weeks to do the surgery, but at seven
weeks and only 10 lbs., Harper couldn’t wait any longer and underwent
open-heart surgery on October 1, 2012, at Children’s Hospital.
During the surgery, it was discovered that Harper had suffered a
heart attack, most likely in utero. Complications required her chest
to remain open for five days in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. With
expert medical care at Children’s Hospital and her parents by her side
24/7, she was able to go home in just 10 days and has made a remarkable
recovery. Harper is just one of the many success stories made possible
through advances in medicine, research, and new technology, which are
supported in part by the many volunteers and donors of the American
Heart Association. Surgeon, Dr. Victor Morell, chief of Pediatric
Cardiothoracic Surgery and co-director of the Heart Center at Children’s
Hospital of Pittsburgh, UPMC, uses these new developments to save
lives every day. “In our family, he is definitely everybody’s hero,” said
Rachel Hutchinson.
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