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Holden at 3 months
[ Home ] [ Holden's School Scrapbook ] [ Holdens Congenital Cardiac Information Page ] [ In Memory of Holden ] [ Missing Holden ] [ In Memory of Holden, my Inspiration ] [ Holden's Hope Enter Page ] [ Holden's Dimes ] Please visit these other web sites about Hoden too
Holden's Hope Foundation- a foundation established in memory of Holden that will provide comfort care to children suffering from critical care illness.
My Son, My Love, My Inspiration ~ The Life of Holden
Holden's Virtual Memorial Page
Cardiac Kids ~~ Holden's Story
Holden's memorial page on Dearly Departed
and made in memory of Holden this absolutely beautiful page,
Thanks so Much Val Mellowstar!
I'ts hard sometimes.
Knowing †he \/\t,
but not always knowing †he \/\/hy
Holden getting ready to go home for the first time ever at 12 days old. He was only home less then 1 week and then re-admitted again. He almost lived at the hospital his first year of life.
Holden being held by Cheryl 12 days after his open heart surgery, Cheryl was Holden's NICU nurse. Holden was 7 and a half months old.
Holden's first time breathing all alone with no oxygen.
4 days old.
University
of Utah hospital negligently missed his condition, even though he was
born with the major arteries on the sides of his heart instead of on the
top where they are supposed to be. After Holden was born, he took
one breath and wouldn't breathe anymore without the aid of a respirator.
Holden was then life flighted to the University of Utah, where a cardiac
catheterization diagnosed Transposition of the Great Vessels, Pactus
Ductus Arthscolerious and a Ventricular Septal Defect. Holden
had a balloon septostomy the night he was born, which although he lost 3
pints of blood, this operation permitted him to be alive until he had
his open-heart surgery at the age of 7 months. During the first year of
Holden's life, he was constantly being admitted to Primary Children's
Hospital for oxygenation problems, RSV, and then his Mustard Repair.
Because of his arteries being in an anatomically incorrect position, the
cardiac thoracic surgeon, Dr. Edwin McGough couldn't do the newer Switch
operation that would have in essence "corrected" his heart.
Dr. McGough accidentally paralyzed Holden's right diaphragm during his
surgery; he doesn't recall getting close to the
phlenic nerve, but he did. From research we knew that there would be
some complications eventually from the Mustard Repair, but it
happened a lot sooner then we anticipated. On average, a child with the
Mustard repair will develop Atrial Flutter from 3 to 6 years after the
surgery, Holden developed the arrhythmia within the first
three months post-op, resulting in his being admitted to the Intensive
Care Unit and being cardioverted until he was in sinus rhythm again. 
heart
stopped for 4 minutes before they could get it beating again on the last
attempt so they allowed him to rest, and in the mean time the meds in
the IV caused his heart to beat regular again. Holden was 27 months old,
and it was the last time he was ever sick. On March 19th, 1996, Holden
was outside playing in the back yard, when I called him inside to have a
time out for calling his friend Corbin a baby, and I looked and he was
down, on the floor, dead in the blink of an eye. Holden died suddenly,
and unexpectedly, only 2 weeks after having a complete cardiac exam,
including a EKG, EEG, Chest X-ray, blood work, Ultra Sound & 24 hour
Holster monitor; everything showing he was in excellent cardiac health.
Holden went into a ventricular arrhythmia called Ventricular
Fibrillation, or V-Fib for short and it he died instantly. It was a
surprising and horrendous event that occurs in only 0.04% of children
who have had the Mustard Repair. Holden would have been 5 in only
nine days had he not died.
