Jean de dieu traveled to Kigali for heart surgery from his home in the Nyaruguru district, a mountainous province in the southern-most part of Rwanda. He is 14-year-old school boy, one of 12 children, who suffered from shortness of breath and chest pain so severe that it limited him from joining in normal activities and sports with his siblings and schoolmates. This was caused by a condition called mitral valve regurgitation which is when the heart valve does not close tightly enough preventing the blood from circulating throughout the body the way it should. It results in severe limitations on daily activities, malnutrition and decreased development. Over time, patients are at risk for pulmonary hypertension, atrial fibrillation and ultimately, a decreased life expectancy.
On Monday in the King Faisal Hospital operating theater, the Team Heart and Rwandan surgical team replaced Jean de dieu’s mitral valve with a brand new mechanical one, giving him a second chance at a normal life. In the intensive care unit, Jean de dieu’s smile has invigorated our team. Since he does not speak English, we have to use funny faces and the few words we know in Kinyarwandan to communicate. But honestly, I think the iPod he’s been listening to all morning really put that smile there – the headphones have not left his ears all day. We can thank Chris Dacey, one of our perfusionists for that (thanks Chris!).
We look forward to getting to know Jean de dieu better as he recovers with us and helps to welcome the rest of our patients after their operations.
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