Kyle Bradley Staples was born Friday, April 24th 2009 in Stephenville, TX. Seemingly, everything was great with Kyle. He had a fast delivery with no complications; however, that day the Pediatrician picked up on a heart murmur. She checked his oxygen levels, and they were low. She informed Kyle's Mommy and Daddy that he would need to be moved to Cook Children's Hospital in Fort Worth for further testing. Kyle was 12 hours old when the Teddy Bear Transport team from Cook Children's arrived. He rode by ambulance to the hospital with his Daddy by his side. His Mommy, Shiloh, was released from the hospital only 15 hours after giving birth. She was rushed to Fort Worth to be by Kyle's side. At the hospital, many tests were done and it was discovered that the left side of Kyle's heart was underdeveloped. The aortic valve was too small and the aortic arch was too narrow. Steve and Shiloh were informed that Kyle would require open heart surgery. The news was devastating!! Here is a timeline of events for the past month.
Friday, April 24th 2009: Kyle Bradley Staples is born in Stephenville, TX at 1:57 a.m. He weighed 7 lbs. 13 oz. and was 19 inches long.
The Pediatrician in Stephenville picks up on a heart murmur and calls for the Teddy Bear Transport from Cook Children's Hospital. Kyle is taken by ambulance to Fort Worth. Tests are run and Kyle needs heart surgery. He is placed in the NICU until the surgery.
Monday, April 27th: Steve and Shiloh meet with Dr. Vincent Tam M.D.. He is the Medical Director of Cardiothoracic surgery. He explains to Steve and Shiloh what will be done for Kyle's heart surgery. The surgery is scheduled for the next day.
Tuesday, April 28th 2009: Kyle has open heart surgery to repair the aortic valve and increase the size of the aortic arch. For the first time since leaving Stephenville, Steve and Shiloh are able to hold Kyle. He goes into surgery at 10:45 a.m, and he is finished by 5:00 p.m. By all accounts, the surgery went well and Dr.Tam was pleased. Kyle's chest is left open to allow for all the swelling to go down. Steve and Shiloh are told the chest will be closed in 3-4 days. Kyle is moved to the PICU.
Saturday, May 2nd 2009: Kyle's chest is closed.
Monday, May 4th: Kyle has an echo cardiogram and they discover a hole between the ventricles. Dr.Tam is not pleased with Kyle's recovery. The pressure on the left side of Kyle's heart is too high. Dr.Tam explains to Steve and Shiloh that the pressure could be the result of three possible situations: 1)The aortic arch is still too narrow. 2) The aortic valve is not working. 3)The hole in the heart is causing the pressure.
More surgery is needed...
Tuesday, May 5th 2009: Kyle had a rough time in the early morning hours. A doctor sat with him through the night monitoring him. At 7:30 a.m, Kyle is prepped for surgery. The surgery begins at 10:30 a.m and is finished by 9:30 p.m. Dr.Tam repaired the hole between the ventricles and increased the size of the aortic arch. Dr.Tam performed the Ross procedure to repair the valve. He took the pulmonary valve from the right side of the heart and replaced the aortic valve. A valve from a cadaver was used in place of the pulmonary valve. The nurse tells Shiloh and Steve that Kyle's heart is happy with the changes made. His chest is left open again, and he is moved back into the PICU.
Wednesday, May 6th 2009: Kyle's kidneys begin to fail. He is placed on dialysis.
Thursday, May 7th 2009: Part of one of Kyle's lungs collapses. Doctors want to put him on an ECMO (Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation) machine. Dr.Tam adjusts Kyle's medications and decides that ECMO is not the best thing for Kyle at the time.
Friday, May 8th 2009: In the early hours of the day, Kyle becomes very unstable while a nurse suctions out his lungs. Steve and Shiloh are called to the hospital. By the time they arrive, Dr.Tam is there. He explains that Kyle's numbers drop during any procedures. Dr.Tam's recommendation is that Kyle be placed on an ECMO machine. The ECMO machine is a technique that gives the blood oxygen outside of the body. One tube drains the blood out of the heart and sends it to the machine to pick up the oxygen. After the oxygen gets into the blood, the other tube brings the blood back to the heart. The ECMO will give Kyle's organs a rest and allow him to recover from all the surgery. He is placed on ECMO that day.
Thursday, May 14th 2009: They start weaning Kyle off the ECMO machine.
Monday, May 18th 2009: Kyle is taken off the ECMO machine and dialysis. It was a good day!
Tuesday, May 19th 2009: Kyle stops urinating and is placed back on dialysis.
Wednesday, May 20th 2009: Kyle remains on dialysis but is very stable. He has a good day!
Thursday, May 21st 2009: Kyle is very swollen. Dr.Tam wants to close his chest, but he cannot do this until the swelling goes down. Kyle is still on dialysis. As soon as his kidneys start functioning the swelling will go down. Then, his chest will be closed. He is stable.
