#aortico

The name Nate of Hebrew origin means gift of God. Nate is without a shadow of a doubt a true gift and I have learnt so much from this 1 year old. Bearly able to walk Nate has tought me how to live life to the fullest and make ever second count 

Nate was born with Aortico Left Ventricular Tunnel

Aorto-ventricular tunnel is a congenital, extracardiac channel which connects the ascending aorta above the sinutubular junction to the cavity of the left, or (less commonly) right ventricle. Approximately 130 cases have been reported in the literature. It is extremely rare with incidence as low as 0.001% of all congenital heart diseases. Making Nate’s condition very rare. The surgery was performed under standard cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) technique using right atrial cannulation and moderate hypothermia. The tunnel was visualized as an external bulge on the aorta at right sinus of Valsalva. The aorta was opened and the entire tunnel was inspected.

Aorta was dilated and a varying degree of aortopathy. Both the aortic and LV openings of the tunnel were identified. The oval-shaped aortic opening was seen extending from the right side of sino-tubular junction to LV opening through interventricular septum. Cold blood cardioplegia was delivered selectively into the coronary arteries. The aortic side of the tunnel was closed using Glutaraldehyde-treated autologous pericardium, whereas the LV side was closed using a Dacron patch.

We wouldn’t wish this situation on anyone. But at the same time, I believe our family is stronger because of it.

I think all parents worry about their kids, but when you have one who’s fragile, it’s like worry on steroids. Do I worry? Yes. The whole point is to give a child the opportunity to have a life. As parents, we have to stop our fear and anxiety from getting in the way of our children going out and living their lives. It’s hard not to be overly protective. But we try to control that. We want to let him be a kid and enjoy growing up.

“We know what we are but know not what we may be.” – Shakespeare

A good life comes from having the right attitude and taking the right actions. Our greatest wish for Nate is:

Having fun Enjoying the love of family and friends Doing things that you love to do Becoming all that you can be Helping others Enjoying each moment

We may not know what the future holds but we know, in this moment, as we watch our bright-eyed son grow, we am blessed beyond measure and we are grateful.