Miracle in Kerala: 4-Month-Old Baby Gets New Life After Rare Heart Surgery at KIMSHEALTH

Thiruvananthapuram: A four-month-old baby girl from Tamil Nadu, who had been battling breathing difficulties and recurrent viral infections since she was a month old, underwent a successful surgery at KIMSHEALTH Trivandrum, for a congenital heart defect.

Parshajini R.S., born after many years of waiting, had to be hospitalised multiple times as her condition worsened. She was eventually referred to KIMSHEALTH for advanced medical management. An echocardiogram revealed a 7mm hole in the wall separating the heart’s ventricles, a condition known as Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD).

In a normal heart, this wall prevents oxygen-rich blood in the left ventricle from mixing with oxygen-poor blood in the right ventricle. In VSD, however, this mixing forces the heart to work harder to pump enough oxygenated blood to the body, leading to breathing difficulties, failure to gain weight, and frequent infections.

The Pediatric Cardiac Surgery team, led by Dr. Sowmya Ramanan V, Senior Consultant, Department of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery, opted for a surgical closure, as the defect was considerably large.

During the four-hour-long procedure, the baby’s heart was connected to a heart-lung machine and stopped for twenty minutes to close the defect using a PTFE patch.

“Babies with heart defects like VSD are vulnerable to recurrent respiratory infections and heart failure. Early surgical correction, even in neonates, is often vital for survival,” said Dr. Sowmya Ramanan.

“The perioperative care was particularly challenging due to the baby’s recent recovery from a viral infection and her low body weight of only 3.5 kilograms,” she added.

Cradled in love, her heart now beats strong and steady. Post-surgery, the baby, who was on ventilator support for a day, made a steady recovery and was discharged on the sixth day.

Dr. Zulfikar Ahamed M, Senior Consultant; Dr. Venkatesh M, Consultant, Department of Pediatric Cardiology; Dr. Subash S, Consultant, Department of Cardio-thoracic Anesthesia; Dr. Nayana Nemani, Consultant, Department of Pediatric Cardio-thoracic Anesthesia; Dr. Shiju Kumar, Consultant; and Dr. Divakar Jose R.R., Associate Consultant, Department of Pediatric Critical Care, were also part of the treatment.