Boy makes recovery after cardiac arrest

HOLLYWOOD, Fla. (WSVN) -- A little boy has made a remarkable recovery days after the scare of a lifetime at a water park.

Three-year-old Jaden Miller was enjoying a day with his parents at Rapids Water Park on July 4, in Riviera Beach, when, without any warning, his heart suddenly stopped.

Jaden had to undergo major Heart surgery to make sure it never happens again. "He's strong," said his mother, Neffretti Miller. "He's strong. He's a good boy."

The toddler went into cardiac arrest four different times at the water park. Jaden had just come down from the slide when the first signs appeared. "He's was on my shoulder," said his father. "I didn't even know."

"He grabbed his head like this," the mother said, pulling at her hair. "You know, like when somebody's having a stroke, and his eyes rolled back, and he just passed out."

What the family didn't know is that their little son had congenital arrhythmia, a genetic heart disorder that affects the electrical system, forcing the heart to flutter uncontrollably.

After suffering the excitement of the water ride, park officials "ran him to first aid," explained Tina Hatcher, spokesperson for Rapids Water Park. "They immediately started CPR. We have EMT on staff, so as soon as they started CPR, they had already gone to get the AED [Automated External Defibrillator] and shocked him."

"They were trying to call his name, but he was unconscious," said the boy's mother. "He's out of it. They couldn't find any pulse, anything."

"The AED was put on, and it shocked the heart back to normal," said Dr. Ming-Lon Young, at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital.

Jaden was moved from St. Mary's Hospital in West Palm to Hollywood Memorial Hospital's Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital where doctors implanted a pacemaker-like device that will shock his heart whenever he needs it. "So the patient's very lucky to be alive," said Young. "With treatment he can have a normal life, but he will need support."

"He likes football," said the mother. "Every sport with a ball he loves, but they say, chances are that football is not going to be for him. Certain sports, he can't do."

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