A terrifying fear became a reality for young parents who were told that their one-week son had to have open-heart surgery.
First-time Mom, Aimee Roberts was absolutely devastated when doctors said that her premature son Leo had four congenital heart problems.
“It was awful. As soon as I found out I was hysterical,” the 25-year-old mother from England told SWNS. “I didn’t stop crying for weeks,” said Aimee, who lives with her partner Alex.
“We learned all about echocardiograms, ECG’s, monitors, blood tests, diagrams, risks and odds.
“Nothing can make you surrender more than having to give your child to a surgeon when there’s a chance of death. I have never cried so much.”
The boy was diagnosed with coarctation (narrowing) of the aortic arch, Patent Ductus Arteriosus (abnormal blood flow between the heart’s arteries), multiple holes in the heart as well as Bicuspid Aortic Valve (two heart valves instead of three).
Because he was born a week prematurely, doctors had to wait 7 days until he was the correct weight to operate on. Aimee said that if they had waited any longer, he could have died.
“It was a complete blur when they were telling us the risks, death was an option. Along with paralysis, infection, damage to spinal cord, stroke and internal bleeding.”
Thankfully, Leo’s surgery was a success, but Aimee recalls going in to see him for the first time after surgery.
She said, “His eyes were puffy. He wasn’t alert. Covered in wires with a machine breathing for him. He was being pumped with medication.”
The couple is extremely grateful to the team of doctors and nurses who saved Leo’s life at Bristol Children’s Hospital.
“He still has two heart conditions, which we have a review for at the end of February. He’s still not perfect, but he’s doing really well,” Aimee said.