7 Transplants Later, Toddler Will Go Home

A toddler who had seven organs replaced eight months ago is healthy enough to leave the hospital and go home for the holidays, her doctors said Friday.

“We told everyone not to get us anything for Christmas because she is our gift,” said grandfather Paul Ernde. “She has given special meaning to the holidays.”

Blond-haired, blue-eyed Caitlin Ernde, now 15 months old, was admitted to the University of Miami Jackson Children’s Hospital in April to replace her ailing liver, pancreas, stomach, both kidneys and her large and small intestines.

She was born with a rare condition that kept her intestines from contracting. As a result, she had to be fed intravenously, which ultimately caused her liver to fail and threatened other organs.

Doctors in her hometown of Pensacola gave her a 10% chance of surviving the year. But her grandparents took her to Miami for a second opinion.

“When we first saw her, we thought she was a good candidate for transplant,” said Dr. Andreas Tzakis. “We were concerned about the wait for a donor at first, but within five weeks we had one.”

In April, Tzakis led a team of surgeons that performed all seven organ transplants. Doctors said the surgery, while rare, was not a first.

Because she required specialized care after surgery, it was impossible for her parents, Michael and Trisha Ernde of Fort Rucker, Ala., or her grandparents, Paul and Donna Ernde of Pensacola, to care for her.

Physicians said Caitlin will have to be monitored for the next five months, fed intravenously for about a year and take a battery of medications to boost her immune system for the rest of her life.

But her risk of infection and organ rejection has decreased, and although she’s now taking 16 medications a day through a stomach tube, she is expected to live a fairly normal life, Tzakis said.

“Ten years from now, if she is still doing well, she will have the same expectancy as any other 11-year-old,” Tzakis said.

She will be returned to her grandparents Sunday, flying home via Angel Flight South Florida, a group of volunteer pilots who provide free air transportation for ill children.

“She’s a fighter,” Tzakis said. “I think she’ll be fine.”