Sutter Heart & Vascular Institute
Patient Stories
Born three months premature and weighing only one pound, 15 ounces, Allison fought for her life in the Special Care Nursery. The isolette next to Allison which held twin sister Emilie, was empty. Weighing a mere one pound, seven ounces, Emilie had been born with critical pulmonary valve stenosis, a congenital heart defect which blocks blood flow from the heart to the pulmonary artery.
Emilie's condition had been diagnosed by pediatric cardiologist Hessam Fallah, M.D. shortly after her birth. The tiny patient was now making history as the smallest baby in the world to undergo a balloon pulmonary valvuloplasty procedure to correct the defect.
"The procedure consists of a special catheter containing an inflatable balloon being inserted into a blood vessel and threaded up through the heart valve where it is inflated," Dr. Fallah explained to Emilie's worried parents. "This opens the valve, allowing more blood to enter and/ or exit the heart.
Given Emilie's small size, Dr. Fallah would have to insert the balloon through her umbilical vein using modified catheters to enter the tiny heart - a heart approximately three quarters of an inch in size! "It takes only a small mistake to cause severe damage," says Dr. Fallah, "Because of the small size and fragility of the baby, anything going wrong could result in death."
Waiting by Allison's bedside as Emilie underwent the extremely delicate operation, Peter and Valerie Cole prayed for both their fragile daughters. After what seemed like an eternity, nurses wheeled Emilie back to the Special Care Nursery. The procedure had been successful with a marked improvement of blood flow to her small heart. "It was such a frightening experience," says Valerie. "But hearing Dr. Fallah's encouraging words about the operation brought us an incredible relief."
There were many more troublesome days for the Coles during the girls' stay in the hospital. But soon, the good days began to outnumber the bad ones. When the twins were 10-weeks old, Valerie and Peter finally held their babies for the first time.
Soon after, Allison was taken off her ventilator. Milestones brought special happiness to Valerie and Peter - Emilie squeezed Valerie's finger for the first time and Allison was able to smile at her relieved parents.
The girls continued to improve and gain much needed weight with Emilie reaching seven pounds and Allison a healthy nine pounds. Another special day happened when Valerie and Peter learned how to use and monitor the equipment necessary to bring their babies home - an oxygen unit for Emilie and an apnea monitor for Allison.
But the very best day occurred when the twins were released from the hospital. After four-and-a-half months, the tiny sisters were able to join the white bunnies in their "carrot patch" nursery