Miracle child
Published: June 10, 2005
Born six weeks early, underweight and with a congenital heart defect, Carson Bradt was in a losing struggle to survive.
“About two days into his life, he was pretty much gone,” his father, Gary Bradt, said.
He was hospitalized for a month in Chapel Hill, where doctors tried a new drug that might help him live long enough to endure a risky heart operation.
It worked. But then came another month in a Greensboro hospital, where his struggles continued.
Carson still weighed only 7 pounds at 4 months. So his parents drove him to Alabama, where cardiac surgeon Al Pacifico tried to patch up his tiny heart.
A week later, he had to go back to Alabama for emergency surgery after a stitch came loose and sent him into congestive heart failure.
Through it all, Carson persevered. He eventually began to thrive.
These days, he runs on the cross country team at Northwest Guilford High School and lives a life free from medication and concerns about his heart.
“He’s a normal 16-year-old,” Gary Bradt said.
On Saturday, Carson will serve as a local ambassador for the American Heart Association’s Heart and Stroke Walk. The event begins 9 a.m. at Country Park.
He will cut a ribbon to start the 3.2-mile walk, in which families, friends and survivors will participate to raise money for heart research and education programs.
The event also will offer health screenings and information, as well as crafts and activities for children.
Carson Bradt said he doesn’t remember any of the struggles he went through as an infant — undergoing then-risky heart operations that have become much more routine because of advances in research and medical techniques.
But his parents, Gary and Peggy Bradt, won’t ever forget. And they’re grateful for what doctors did for their son.
“He’s our miracle child,” Gary Bradt said.
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