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<PM 7 [\MZNM TL[ Maryn Osterfeld was diagnosed with hip dysplasia at 9 months old and needed surgery. Just when she should have been learning to crawl or walk, she had to spend months in a spica cast, then a hip brace. Now 2 years old, those days are a distant memory. She wears a brace only when she sleeps. “She can crawl, walk, run and just learned to jump,” says her mom, Mara.
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Several months ago, we asked families to send in photographs from their experiences at Cincinnati Children’s so we could look back at their medical journeys. More than 100 families sent in snapshots. We invited 14 families back to tell us about how far they’ve come. These are their stories.
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four months early. She 2 pounds when she arrived Lilly McL ane weighe d less than el per fora tion . Her first ati Chi ldre n’s to rep air a bow nee ded surg ery at Cin cinn r mon ths at Cin cinn ati still too big for her. Afte r fou diap ers wer e doll -sized and 3 years old. “The nurses enough to go home. She’s now Children’s, she grew strong could stay strong for our ds of encouragement so we and other staf f always had wor some of the nurses. ley, who still stays in touch with tiny girl,” says her mother, Ash
<PM * ]NNQV O\WV[ Jaelynn Buffington was born in 2010 with a bilateral complete cleft lip and palate. She had to be fed with a syringe for her first month of life. Specialist s at Cincinnati Children’s performed surgeries and fixed her smile. Her mother, Crysta, says it’s nothing short of “amazing.”
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rgery, they were ck ne eded skull su ’s nd out their son Za fou er og Kr a cin ris Cin nati Children When David and Ma me. Specialists at sa the be er ev ve lop pr op erl y. ere d if life would d eye mu sc les de scare d. They wond lp Za ck ’s sk ull an he to s rie re. rge su ed le care he receiv he pe rfo rm ed mu ltip just fine, thanks to ing do d an old ars Today, Zack is 8 ye
<PM +]Z \Q[ .IU QTa Harrison Curtis was born on March 6, 2008. A routine ultrasound had warned that he had a heart condition. On March 9, Harrison underwent a nine-hour surgery to repair his heart. He spent a month at Cincinnati Children’s recovering. His two older brothers were not allowed in the hospita l room during his recover y, so the hospital’s Child Life specialists arrange d for them to meet their new brother via webcam. “Today, Harrison is doing great and is under the continued care of the kind people at the Heart Institute at Cincinnati Children’s,” says his mom,
<PM ;\W]\[ Peyton Stout was born two months early with such severe complications that doctors told his parents he would not survive. After three months of specialized care at Cincinnati Children’s, Peyton beat the odds. He has been diagnosed with a mild case of cerebral palsy, but he is a thriving 5-year-old. “He walks with assistance and talks non-stop,” says his mom, Katie. “Thank you to all of the wonderful doctors, nurses and therapists at Cincinnati Children’s.”
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www.cincinnatichildrens.org/youngandhealthy
young and healthy |
SUMMER 2012
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When Holly Dannema n was pre gnant with her sec ond set of twins, a routine ultraso und revealed complications. One twi n, Jake, had devel op ed a ne ar-fat al co nd itio n. At 29 weeks, he require d immediate surgery to save his life . Twin Jenna wa s alo ng for the rid e. Ho lly, an em erg en cy me dic ine physi cia n, says no amount of me dical training could have prepared her and her hu sb an d, Jim , for the fam ily’s me dical journey. Nine years later, Jake is an ath lete. Jen na is a scholar and a dancer. They’re the mid dle ch ildr en in a pa ck of six kid s. “N ot a day go es by tha t I don’t think of how ble ssed we are,” their mother says.
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had brain surge ly Austin Ha armeyer after Austin sudden ctors discovered it Do . ma rno e ve tur ca brainstem . His “before” pic e at 13 months old sid ht rig his of e e bandag lost the us they removed the after surgery, when d loves to an was from the day old ars hat.” He’s now 3 ye g cin “ra his d . lle that they ca ys his mom, Paula was very risky,” sa ry rge su he “T . mb run and cli is doing great.” report that Austin “But I am happy to
Jane Roberts spent her first year in and out of Cincinnati Children’s for hear t surgeries to correct a series of congenital hear t
defe cts. “Being told she probably wouldn’t survive was devastating,” says her mom, Andrea. “Seeing her pull through four open-heart surgeries, months of hospital
stays and year s of therapy was ama zing.” Today, she is 9 year s old and perfectly healthy. As a third-grader, she had the reading level and comprehension of a ninthgrader. The family’s “before” picture is of Jane connected to lots of tubes and monitors. Today, her family can hug her
<PM +TI a\WZ [ His parents thought Austin Claytor just had a cough when they took him to the doctor in 2009. It turned out to be a staph infection that nearly wiped out his airway and lungs. Doctors placed him on an artificial lung machine. There were moments when his family wondere d if he would ever recover. But he pulled through. He had to relearn how to walk and talk, but today he is getting ready for junior high. He loves hunting and fishing and is back to playing sports again. “We really don’t notice much difference in him,” says his dad, Otis, “other than he is super strong.”
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n Perez In Januar y 20 07, Eva geries had the last of four sur ing any to keep him from hav ltiple more ear infe ctions. Mu d his infe ctions had impaire spe ech hearing, and he had a allowe d delay. The surgeries ical child, him to hear like a typ m the and he graduate d fro m two gra pro y rap the ech spe a great years ago. At 12, he has ll and is vocabulary, hears we team. captain of his baseball Cincinnati, “Nothing compares in vice we or any where, to the ser en’s,” had at Cincinnati Childr Today, says his mom, Laura. glad to Evan is 11 years old and be healthy.
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<PM 8W\ \MJI]U[ Katelyn n Pottebaum’s arrival eight weeks early was fraught with complic ations. Katelyn n’s underdeveloped lungs made it hard for her to absorb oxygen, and caregive rs at her birth hospita l said there was nothing else they could do. But to everyon e’s amazem ent, Katelyn n held on. Nurses at Cincinn ati Children’s slowly weaned her off oxygen so she could breathe on her own, and before long, she was able to go home. “The exit from the hospita l was bittersweet,” says her mother, Christin a. “We are forever indebte d to every single person who came into contact with Katelynn. I swore at that moment we’d never forget Children’s and what they did for us.”
Chase Daisey was a healthy 1-year-old when he was admitted to the hospital after battling a fever for several days. An infection that had started in his throat turned into an abscess and infected his lymph nodes. He needed two surgeries and a two-week stay at the hospital. “I remember wondering how we ended up there,” says his mom, Julie. “But we knew we were in the right place. The healing that happens inside these walls is powerful. The people are amazing. We will never forget our time here and those who touched our lives.”
<PM *QZKS[ Anna Birck was born in December 2002 with a congenital diaphragmatic hernia, a life-threatening birth defect that causes respiratory distress. She had surgery at Cincinnati Children’s three days after birth. “We brought her home on Christmas Eve, the best gift we could have wished for that Christmas,” says her mom, Jane. Anna is now a happy, healthy 9-year-old.
Scan to watch our “Look at Me Now” Video.