PHOENIX (AZFamily)<\/b> \u2014 An 8-year-old Valley girl born with a severe congenital heart defect has defied early medical expectations and is now a competitive dancer, thanks to a series of surgeries and ongoing care at Phoenix Children\u2019s.<\/p>\n
Quinn was diagnosed before birth with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a condition in which the left side of the heart does not properly develop. Her mother, Sandee Walker, said the diagnosis brought uncertainty from the start.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a lot of unknowns,\u201d Walker said.<\/p>\n
Surgeries start at 6 days old<\/p>\n
Quinn underwent her first of three surgeries at just 6 days old. Dr. Daniel Velez, division chief of cardiothoracic surgery at Phoenix Children\u2019s, performed the procedures.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a complicated operation,\u201d Velez said. \u201cThe size of the heart is about the size of a golf ball. And, not to underscore that, yes, it is something that could be classified as crazy, what we do operating in such small structures.\u201d<\/p>\n
A team approach to care<\/p>\n
Quinn\u2019s treatment extended beyond the operating room. Walker said Quinn also completed intensive feeding therapy through Phoenix Children\u2019s Center for Heart Care, finishing in roughly two months \u2014 a timeline her care team described as unusual.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did intensive feeding therapy, and they were like, \u2018This is gonna take a long time. This is gonna be months, and she\u2019s gonna need her tube for years and years and years,\u2019\u201d Walker said. \u201cAnd she proved them wrong, and we graduated in, like, two months. And they were like, \u2018This is unheard of.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Velez credited the hospital\u2019s multidisciplinary structure for outcomes like Quinn\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is where the whole team approach and multidisciplinary aspect of having a dedicated venue comes into play,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Dancing through doubt<\/p>\n
Walker, a dance teacher, said she was initially told by another doctor that Quinn would likely never dance. Quinn is now a competitive dancer.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe craziest thing about our whole journey is that she has smiled the whole time,\u201d Walker said.<\/p>\n
Quinn said she looks forward to dancing every day.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m really excited to just do it every day, because I love doing it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Velez said seeing patients like Quinn grow is central to why he practices medicine.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe reason I do this is to provide children their best ability to achieve whatever they want to accomplish,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is very joyful to see the kids develop and evolve into the best that they can do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ongoing care and monitoring<\/p>\n
Walker said Quinn\u2019s cardiologists regularly note the strength of her heart during checkups.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery time we go for an echo, the cardiologists always tell me how strong her heart is. And they always say it\u2019s because she dances. And it\u2019s just such a full circle moment for me every time I hear it,\u201d Walker said.<\/p>\n
Quinn continues to take medications and sees specialists at the Center for Heart Care at Phoenix Children\u2019s Hospital. Approximately 1,000 babies are born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome each year in the United States. Continued care and monitoring remain part of Quinn\u2019s treatment plan.<\/p>\n
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