Dr. Marco Ricci, the director of pediatric cardiac
define surgery and Dr. Si Pham, MD of cardiothoracic surgery in University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center, said in a press conference that for the first time in the history of medical science, a child survived without heart for a time as long as four months. He said that in a similar case in Germany, an adult lived for nine months without heart.
Dr. Marco Ricci said, “She essentially lived for 118 days without a heart, with her circulation supported only by the two blood pumps"
The doctors said that Simmons, 14, suffered from dilated cardiomyopathy i.e. a heart muscle disease characterized by thinning and weakness of the heart muscle. Due to this, her blood pump could not function properly.
In July, the girl’s heart was transplanted but due to its failure to work it was removed quickly by the doctors. After that she was hospitalized in Holtz Children’s Hospital at the University where she lived for 118 days with the help of two custom-built artificial blood-pumps until she could receive a new heart. Doctors implanted another heart on Oct. 29.
Dr. Ricci said, “she is the first pediatric patient who has received such a device in this configuration without the heart, and possibly one of the youngest that has ... been bridged to transplantation without her native heart."
While sharing her experience, the brave girl Simmons said, “I felt like I was a fake person. Like I didn't really exist. I was just here" she added, “It felt like people kept continuously like making noises inside of you because the machine made noises."
Simmons’ mother, Twolla Anderson, said, "I would listen to the machine, and the machine is what's keeping her here, beating for her. Day-to-day, she didn't know what to expect or what to think."
The doctors said that the first two months were very crucial because Simmons was not well but later on she recovered and they made this miracle i.e. the second heart transplantation happen.
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