Baby’s Recovery Called ‘a Miracle’
A baby born with a heart defect that is usually fatal without a heart transplant survived after his condition improved unexpectedly, physicians at Loma Linda University Medical Center said Monday.
“We’ve been awed by the baby, really,” said Dr. Leonard Bailey, the medical center’s pioneering pediatric heart surgeon. “It’s been an impressive experience. . . . It’s sort of a miracle.”
The baby, Weston Kilpatrick, was born on July 27 in Santa Maria with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a condition where the heart’s main pumping chamber fails to develop, as well as two underdeveloped heart valves, a narrowed aorta and an open duct between two arteries, Bailey said.
After being transferred to Loma Linda, Weston was placed on a waiting list for donor hearts. When doctors performed ultrasound tests on his heart about 10 days ago, they were amazed to find spontaneous and unprecedented development of the left side of the heart and the two valves, Bailey said.
Cardiac surgery was performed Friday, but Weston no longer requires a heart transplant to save his life, Bailey said. The baby should be able to leave the hospital in about a week.
“We have never seen this phenomenon,” said Dr. Jorge McCormack, a pediatric cardiologist.
Bailey said Weston’s heart has “developed to a nearly normal architecture.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
