Miracle baby heart bypass surgery
Published: July 13, 2006
A Lancashire baby has been described as a “little miracle” after undergoing a heart bypass operation 10 days after his birth.
Kian Ashcroft’s parents have spoken of their emotional rollercoaster after being told their son needed major surgery to correct a congenital heart defect.
Mum Joanna said that, without surgery, her son probably wouldn’t have survived another week.
Now all safely back at home in Sagar Street, Eccleston, she said she realised something was wrong within seconds of Kian being born.
“The scan didn’t detect any problem,” said Joanna, who is married to Craig.
“When he was born he was a grey colour and the doctors knew something was wrong. My husband was with me and he looked at the nurses and their faces said it all.
“It was sheer panic. He was never with me.”
He was sent to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, in Liverpool, for assessment where the baby, who weighed 6lb 12oz at birth, underwent a scan to find out what was wrong.
It was then that specialists discovered that Kian had Total Anomalous Pulmonary Venous connection, which meant the main veins in his heart were connected backwards.
Joanna and Craig were told that 10-day-old Kian would have to be taken into surgery straight for a heart bypass operation to correct the problem.
Joanna said: “It was absolutely horrendous. The doctors explained that TAPV was a very serious condition and had to run through all the risks that the heart bypass surgery carried with it.
“I just couldn’t take it in. It was all a blur. Craig was staying positive for me but it was just awful. The doctors said the condition was correctable but it had risks.
“Knowing that he would have to have such a big operation was horrible.”
She was even told there was a chance Kian wouldn’t survive the operation.
On May 12, he underwent the five-hour operation.
Doctors told the worried parents that it could take months before Kian recovered from the surgery, but everyone was amazed when he was well enough to go home within two weeks.
And last week, they were given the news that the operation appeared to have been a 100% success.
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