PHOENIX — Doctors had to try something new.
12-year-old David Ontiveros already had 4 open heart surgeries. With each procedure, doctors had to deal with more scar tissue and potential complications.
"He was born with a pretty complex heart defect. In which one of the valves of his heart was missing," Phoenix Children's Hospital pediatrician Joseph Graziano said.
Stephanie learned about her son's heart defect a week after learning she was six months pregnant at 17.
"For me, I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know what to think," Stephanie said.
David would need procedures for his heart almost yearly until he was five to help an artificial valve keep up with a growing heart.
The heart defect prevented David from playing sports.
“Sometimes I see myself and ask god why am I so different?” David said.
Doctors told David last year he would need another procedure but they searched for a new solution to get around the scar tissue buildup.
“We had the idea to try to replace David's valve with a technique we use in older patients,” Dr. Graziano said.
Doctors wanted to use TAVR, a procedure that uses a catheter to replace a valve.
Kids are too small for the procedure, which normally sends the catheter through an adult's leg. However, doctors at PCH adapted the procedure to go through David's heart.
“This is the first, certainly in phoenix children’s hospital, probably the first in the southwest to have a procedure like this.” Dr. Graziano said.
At first, Stephanie was not on board with the idea.
“In mom lingo—guinea pig. That’s what I thought off the bat. I don’t want my son to be a guinea pig.”
Doctors eventually convinced Stephanie to let them try the procedure.
Three months later, David feels normal. Doctors told David he can play basketball for the first time in his life.
"I'm going to be that overprotective mom. Someone is probably going to have to hold me back,” Stephanie said.
Doctors say David will likely need another procedure in about 12 years.
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