Andrew William Gilbert

Andrew was born with a serious heart defect called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS). The same evening he was born, he was transferred to Children's Hospital in Detroit to await the first of three open heart surgeries to correct the problem. His left ventricle and aorta didn't fully develop, which means he had no way to pump blood to his body after birth. In the first surgery, done on November 26,2003 the doctors took part of his pulmonary artery and made his aorta larger. This allows his right ventricle (which normally pumps blood to the lungs) to now pump blood to his body. A temporary shunt was inserted to allow flow of blood to his lungs as well. The second surgery was done on April 16,2004. In this surgery they will remove the shunt and sew the main artery that comes from the upper part of his body right into his artery that goes to his lungs. This will significantly reduce the amount of blood his heart will have to pump and hopefully improve his heart function (how hard his heart squeezes). The last surgery was done on Feb. 14,2006 and took the main artery that comes from the lower portion of his body and made it flow to his lungs.

We appreciate all the prayers for Andrew and our family. Please continue to pray for him to grow stronger each day. This is a long road to complete healing, but we know that God is going to bring it to pass. Andrew is our miracle baby and God has a very special plan for his life.

Born: November 19, 2003

Weight: 8.15 lbs Length: 20

Journal

Saturday, October 10, 2009 9:21 PM CDT

FALL IS ARRIVING AND SO TO IS ANDREW'S 6TH BIRTHDAY!

ANDREW HAS ADJUSTED TO ALL DAY KINDERGARTEN AND IS DOING GREAT. HE HAS ONLY BEEN SICK WITH A SINUS INFECTION SO FAR--HOPEFULLY THAT WILL BE ALL WE HAVE TO DEAL WITH!! HE IS BUSY MAKING OUT HIS BIRTHDAY LIST! WE JUST HAD TO DO A HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT ABOUT A TIME LINE OF HIS LIFE. HE PICKED PICTURES FROM HIS FIRST B-DAY, HIS MAKE-A-WISH TRIP AND HIS T-BALL PICTURE. WE HAD FUN LOOKING BACK AT LOTS OF PICTURES. SOME HE REMEMBERS AND WE FOUND ONE THAT I TOOK RIGHT BEFORE HIS FIRST SURGERY. I ASKED HIM WHAT WAS MISSING ON THE PICTURE OF HIS CHEST AND HE LIFTED HIS SHIRT AND SAID HIS ZIPPER WAS NOT THERE--MADE ME CRY. THIS WAS THE REASON I TOOK THE PICUTRE ALMOST 6 YEARS AGO SO SOMEDAY I COULD SHOW HIM HIS CHEST MINUS THE SCAR!!! HE HAS COME SO FAR AND I AM SO BLESSED THAT HE IS A HEALTHY BOY AND WE GET TO CONTINUE TO CELEBRATE BIRTHDAYS WITH HIM!!!

LAURA

Read Journal History

Hospital Information:

Home Sweet Home

Links:

E-mail Author: joslynoffmgr@comcast.net

---

 

Your gift will help millions of people stay connected with friends and loved ones during challenging times.

---

 

This page has been viewed 16951 times.

Note: The foregoing information was authored by the patient, parent or guardian, or other parties who are solely responsible for the content. Such announcements or their content are not necessarily endorsed by CaringBridge, Inc. or any sponsoring agent.  This information does not confirm that anyone is or was actually a patient at any facility.