Adokorach gets to Kenya

Adokorach with Dr. Papy who came with her from DRCongo

SEE Previous blog "Adokorach's Heart"

After many hours by bus, Adokorach, her husband and Dr. Papy finally arrived at Tenwek hospital in Kenya. The hope was that we would be able to fix her valve with the balloon procedure that was described in an earlier blog. Unfortunately we found that she still had bloot clot in her left atrium making the procedure too dangerous to perform. In stead she was scheduled for valve replacement. Tenwek is one of the very few places where this open heart surgery is available. At least to people without a lot of money. She was very frightened to have the surgery. Afer explaining exactly what would happen and praying with her about it, she realized that It was her best hope.

.She did well with the surgery and is now on her way back to DR Congo. We are so thankful for the dedicated doctors and nurses who lovingly cared for her.

Update on Able and Aziza

Before we left Ethiopia we were able to meet with Abel and his family. We learned that the family had traveled 600 kilometers for his medical care. At home he had been so disabled that he had had to quit school. He couldn't walk without coughing up blood and getting very short of breath. On the day we saw him, he and his family had walked to the clinic for the first time! He was so excited to get back to school. He would like to become a doctor.

Abe with his mother, brother and the Cardiac team

Aziza with her mother

We learned that some of the girls that were supposed to come to be evaluated for the balloon procedure did not come because they were told that if they had the procedure they would never be able to have children. This is of course not true. In fact if they try to have children without having their heart valve fixed, they could die during the pregnancy. The story came from the fact that if they had their valve fixed by surgical valve replacement, they would have to be on blood thinner for the rest of their life and were warned never to get pregnant.

Aziza and her mother were over joyed to learn that her procedure was successful and some day she would be able to have a family.

The patients we were able to do the balloon procedure on are all doing well.

Heart for Ethiopia

Able is an 18 year old living in Addis Ababa. Several years ago he noticed that he was no longer able to run with the other boys. He had to stop playing football (soccer). Now he gets short of breath with very little exertion. One of the valves in his heart has been progressively damaged by repeated exposure to Strep bacteria. All the blood that his body needs to function must pass through an extremely small opening. His family brought him to the Black Lion hospital in hopes that he would be one of the few patient selected for the balloon valvuloplasty procedure to open his valve.

We screened 24 patients our first day to identify the 12 we would be able to help. It's a difficult and potentially dangerous procedure so we make our selections with much caution and prayer. At the same time, for most of these people, it's their only hope.

Abel made the cut because of the severity of his disease and the lack of alternatives

Just before discharge, all smiles.

The next day he was discharged from the hospital doing well. We will see him again this week to mark his progress.

Aziza is another patient we were able to help.

Aziza and her mother after her procedure

We are in Ethiopia with a team sponsored by Children's Surgery International and Lifestream Foundation. Along with Woubashet Ayenew a cardiologist at Hennepin County Medical Center, Ben Johnson a cardiology fellow from HCMC  and Brinder Kanda a fellow of cardiac structural intervention at Abbot. We are working along side the staff at the  Cardiac Center of Ethiopia, a part of the Black Lion Hospital.

Nursing staff

We will be in Ethiopia for 5 more days.