Leonardo Nicolas Melo Carranza

When Leonardo Melo Sabag was born, we thought he was a perfectly healthy little baby. After 9 days of being born we took him to his first visit to the pediatrician since he was showing signs of discomfort and we were immediately referred to the pediatric cardiologist where they detected a murmur in his little heart. That day was when the cardiologist gave us the saddest news we could ever imagine, that our baby was born with a congenital heart defect. He was diagnosed with: Congenital Mitral Stenosis Tricuspid valve with insufficient moderation Severe arterial pulmonary hypertension Hipoplastic aortic arc without obstruction That same day he was hospitalized and his condition worsened since his heart was not pumping enough oxygen rich blood out of his lungs and also causing his lungs to fill up with blood. All this time he could have been receiving treatment, but this was not detected at birth and would not have corrected the heart defect. Now at only 3 months, our little angel has been hospitalized numerous times including a trip to the ICU. A group of 10 cardiologists in Arizona have given Leonardo a minimal chance of survival unless he has surgery soon due to the amount of stress being caused to his heart and lungs. Along with his worsening condition and the potentially deadly heart defect, the possibility of surviving is limited without receiving urgent attention which involves surgery. This type of surgery requires a mitral valve replacement or reparation as soon as possible which is delicate for a child that is less than a year old. As our son grows, he will require further open heart surgeries to replace the valve as the heart grows as well, which is also a concern and worrysome. As parents, we can't stand around and cross our arms and allow the situation worsen as the symptoms become more advanced as this is a progressive congenital disease. We've looked for every possible solution to save our baby and fortunately, we've found the one option that can keep our baby alive and that is two Pediatric Cardiologist Surgeons in Boston who specialize in this type of infirmity, who have performed this procedure in children who are less than a year old. Leonardo requires urgent attention due to the high levels of stress being placed on his lungs and the additional life threatening symptoms being caused by the mitral valve defect. Doctors Emani and Doctor del Nido from Boston Children's Hospital possess the knowledge and experience that our baby requires as they've performed similar operations on babies only a few days old. They are also known for using a new valve/process called the 'Melody Valve', which they are responsible for creating. The Melody Valve, can be expanded along with the growth of the child and their heart simply by means of using a catheter in the child's artery without having to intervene with multiple open heart surgeries. The Melody Valve procedure has only been performed by these two doctors and this is currently being done at Boston Children's Hospital. Both doctors have reviewed Leonardo's prognosis and are both in agreement that the baby requires 2 procedures, one to perform a cardiac catheterization to assess the heart and the pressure in the lungs and then follow up with a surgery to repair or replace the mitral valve. We are reaching out for help since Leonardo doesn't have insurance. We are seeking help from anyone who is willing to help our son, Leonardo in receiving this life saving procedure. Our son is a survivor and has a strong soul which has kept him pulling through on a day by day basis to stay alive! He needs your help to continue living and any questions regarding the authenticity of his story can be corroborated at Boston Children's Hospital Your donation can be sent directly to the hospital for my son by calling her or directly through this campaign. Please we are looking for as much help as soon as possible to save Leonardo's life. Our family thanks you from the bottom of our heart and want you to know that it is important for us to tell you that God will return the kindness you have shown for helping a family in need of saving a little boy's life which still has many years of dreams still ahead of him to come. Cuando Leonardo naci? pensamos que era un bebe totalmente sano a los 9 d?as de nacido lo llevamos a revisi?n pedi?trica porque ?l Bebe manifestaba un quejido como si tuviera dolor en dicha visita le detectaron un soplo cardiaco, nos pasaron inmediatamente a cardiolog?a pedi?trica donde nos dieron la noticia m?s triste que pod?amos haber imaginado, dijeron que ?l bebe hab?a nacido con defectos cong?nitos cardiacos muy severos y le diagnosticaron: Estenosis mitral cong?nita (mitral congenital stenosis) V?lvula Tric?spide con insuficiencia moderada Hipertensi?n arterial pulmonar severa Arco a?rtico hipoplasico sin obstrucci?n. Ese mismo d?a lo hospitalizaron ya estaba bastante grave por los d?as que ten?a sin tratamiento Despu?s del nacimiento, desde entonces a sus s?lo 3 meses de edad ha sido una infinidad de entradas y salidas del hospital, incluyendo terapia intensiva, lo vio un grupo de 10 cardi?logos en Arizona diciendo que ?l bebe ten?a pocas posibilidades de sobrevivencia ya que su enfermedad es potencialmente mortal y est? bastante avanzada, dijeron que necesitaba una cirug?a con urgencia pero que era bastante arriesgado por lo peque?o que era, que ellos podr?an realizarle la cirug?a al a?o de edad, ?l bebe necesita un reemplazo de la v?lvula mitral lo m?s pronto posible, conforme ?l bebe crezca esa v?lvula de reemplazo deber?a crecer con ?l y como eso no es posible ?l bebe necesita varias cirug?as a coraz?n abierto para reemplazo de su v?lvula y eso es bastante arriesgado, como padres no pod?amos cruzarnos de brazos mientras la enfermedad del bebe segu?a avanzando mientras m?s s?ntomas aparec?an ya que es una enfermedad progresiva, buscamos por todas partes la mejor soluci?n para salvar a nuestro bebe y afortunadamente existe una ?nica opci?n en el mundo para que ?l pueda seguir viviendo es muy espec?fica y solamente dos Cirujanos cardi?logos pediatras hacen este procedimientos en ni?os menores a un a?o y Leonardo lo ocupa urgentemente por las presiones tan altas que se le est?n manifestando en sus pulmones y otros problemas de bastante riesgo generados por su enfermedad. El Doctor Emani y el Doctor del Nido Del hospital del ni?o en Boston cuentan con la experiencia para operar beb?s con el mismo padecimiento de nuestro bebe desde los pocos d?as de nacidos, ellos realizan una cirug?a reemplazando su v?lvula mitral con una v?lvula llamada v?lvula melody que puede ser expandida por medio de cateterismos conforme ?l bebe crezca y aguantar as? hasta llegar a su edad adulta, dicha v?lvula ha sido creada por estos dos cardi?logos y hasta el d?a de hoy s?lo ellos la utilizan y s?lo en el hospital de Boston se realiza este procedimiento, Ellos revisaron los estudios del bebe y estuvieron de acuerdo en que ?l bebe ocupa un cateterismo seguido de una cirug?a en las pr?ximas semanas para salvar su vida, Leonardo no cuenta con seguro para que le realicen la operaci?n. Por favor necesitamos su ayuda para que nuestro bebe pueda ser intervenido por estos doctores lo m?s pronto posible, ?l bebe es un gran guerrero que hasta este d?a se ha esforzado mucho por sobrevivir y ha resistido bastante!! El necesita su ayuda para continuar viviendo, toda esta informaci?n puede ser corroborada con Karen Otero la asistente del Doctor del Nido en Boston, pueden hacer donaci?n directamente a esta p?gina por favor necesitamos su ayuda lo m?s pronto posible les agradecemos con todo el coraz?n y lo m?s importante es que Dios sabr? recompensarlos por ayudar a salvar una vida llena de sue?os que apenas comienzan.