Three-year-old in Quad Cities Has Heart Transplant, Makes it Home for Christmas
Delilah Edwards was born with a condition that causes her organs to form abnormally.
According to childrenshospital.org, "Many children with heterotaxy have complex heart defects, which are often the most challenging problems associated with heterotaxy.
In addition to the heart, the intestines, liver, spleen, and lungs can also be affected. Some children have a mild form of heterotaxy with only minor abnormalities of just one or two organs. Other children have very complex forms of heterotaxy involving multiple different organs."
It's estimated 1 in 10,000 people suffer from the condition.
As Ryan Edwards, Delilah's father told ourquadcities.com, the diagnosis came when Delilah’s mom was 21 weeks pregnant. Her very first surgery came three weeks after she was born.
Delilah has had 11 surgeries in total, eight of which have been open-heart. Her parents knew that at some point in time she'd need to have her heart replaced.
Over two years after her first operation, Delilah's parents received the call that they'd been waiting for.
They accepted a heart, so right then everything moved so fast. Within a couple days after she was in a 13-hour surgery,
Edwards explained to Our Quad Cities.
Just hearing her voice, the doctor’s voice, when she was talking to me, something was different about the call. The best thing about it is when they tell you the heart started beating on its own. It’s a whole different feeling. She has a brand-new start.
The transplant took place in November of this year.
She was even able to make it home for Christmas.
Her course has been truly outstanding. I mean, she's had really no complications post out from her heart, which can be rare to see sometimes.
Delilah's nurse, Megan Miniat told ABC 7 Chicago. This was the 400th heart transplant performed at Lurie Children's Hospital.
Heading home is not something the Edwards family is taking lightly, especially after what their little girl has been through.
This is definitely a big moment for us, for her. This is her moment,
said Edwards.