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Print7 News Features: Heart on Hold
Posted: 02/09/12
Reported by:
Producer:
Janna Ross
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A South Florida baby is in desperate need of a heart transplant, and while he waits for a donor, a special device is keeping him alive. 7's Lynn Martinez introduces us to a little boy with his Heart on Hold.
WSVN -- Like any first-time mom, Alexa Gutierrez was excited about having a baby.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "It was a pretty easy pregnancy. I had him, and I didn't know anything was wrong, I thought I had a healthy baby."
A baby boy she named Jayden.
For the next 11 months, everything was perfect. But right before he turned 1, she knew something was wrong.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "He started losing a lot of weight and getting pale. I would sit him on the floor, and he would lay down. He didn't even want to play."
Jayden was so tired, he would just sleep. Then late one night, he started choking in his crib, and Alexa rushed him to the emergency room.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "They came in and were like, 'Oh my gosh, we have to admit you, we have to admit you. His heart is enlarged.' I didn't even understand what they were telling me."
But the doctor was crystal clear on Jayden's future: He would not live without a new heart.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "I was terrified, I mean, that's my baby."
With his heart failing, Jayden was transferred to Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital.
A short time later, the little boy went into cardiac arrest.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "The moment was in slow motion. I was just sitting there watching them, his lifeless body."
Doctors were able to bring Jayden back, but his own heart could no longer keep him alive.
The only way to save his life was to let a machine take over.
Dr. Maryanne Chrisant, Dir. of Pediatric Heart Transplant Program: "The pumping part of the device is external to Jayden's body and acts as an extra ventricle, or an extra pumping chamber."
Jayden is hooked up 24/7 to this little device called the Berlin heart.
It allows children like him to play and even dance.
But underneath the smiles and giggles, this mom faces a harsh reality: she knows the clock is ticking.
Her son needs a new heart, and soon.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "It's tiring, it really is, you know? You wake up every day, and you're like, 'Wow, still not here.'"
Dr. Maryanne Chrisant, Dir. of Pediatric Heart Transplant Program: "We typically try and prepare families for anywhere from six weeks to about three months worth of waiting."
Jayden can't leave the hospital until he has the transplant, and no one knows when that call will come.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "I just want him to be a normal child, and live happy, have fun, play, everything he's supposed to do."
Lynn Martinez: "Once Jayden gets the heart transplant, his doctors say he can live a normal, healthy life."
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "It was a pretty easy pregnancy. I had him, and I didn't know anything was wrong, I thought I had a healthy baby."
A baby boy she named Jayden.
For the next 11 months, everything was perfect. But right before he turned 1, she knew something was wrong.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "He started losing a lot of weight and getting pale. I would sit him on the floor, and he would lay down. He didn't even want to play."
Jayden was so tired, he would just sleep. Then late one night, he started choking in his crib, and Alexa rushed him to the emergency room.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "They came in and were like, 'Oh my gosh, we have to admit you, we have to admit you. His heart is enlarged.' I didn't even understand what they were telling me."
But the doctor was crystal clear on Jayden's future: He would not live without a new heart.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "I was terrified, I mean, that's my baby."
With his heart failing, Jayden was transferred to Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital.
A short time later, the little boy went into cardiac arrest.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "The moment was in slow motion. I was just sitting there watching them, his lifeless body."
Doctors were able to bring Jayden back, but his own heart could no longer keep him alive.
The only way to save his life was to let a machine take over.
Dr. Maryanne Chrisant, Dir. of Pediatric Heart Transplant Program: "The pumping part of the device is external to Jayden's body and acts as an extra ventricle, or an extra pumping chamber."
Jayden is hooked up 24/7 to this little device called the Berlin heart.
It allows children like him to play and even dance.
But underneath the smiles and giggles, this mom faces a harsh reality: she knows the clock is ticking.
Her son needs a new heart, and soon.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "It's tiring, it really is, you know? You wake up every day, and you're like, 'Wow, still not here.'"
Dr. Maryanne Chrisant, Dir. of Pediatric Heart Transplant Program: "We typically try and prepare families for anywhere from six weeks to about three months worth of waiting."
Jayden can't leave the hospital until he has the transplant, and no one knows when that call will come.
Alexa Gutierrez, Jayden's Mom: "I just want him to be a normal child, and live happy, have fun, play, everything he's supposed to do."
Lynn Martinez: "Once Jayden gets the heart transplant, his doctors say he can live a normal, healthy life."