(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The medical team at Advocate Children’s Hospital in Oak Lawn celebrated their first pediatric heart transplant patient, a 15-year-old girl from East Chicago, three months after her surgery.
“Natalie, we celebrate you, we honor you.”
Natalie Paramo was surrounded by dozens of specialists from various disciplines at her celebration.
“An orchestra that needs to play for the first time with so many pieces, and it all came together,” said Dr. Luca Vricella, the Director of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery.
She learned last fall that she had a heart problem when she became out of breath while trying out for basketball.
Her pediatrician heard a heart murmur. Ultimately it led to a transplant in early December.
“There’s nothing as just shocking, fulfilling, and rewarding, such as taking a heart from a bucket of ice, putting it in somebody’s chest, see that heart beating again and changing their quality of life,” Dr. Vricella said.
He said Natalie was home in a couple weeks and that she’ll play basketball again.
Her mother said “I’ll be thankful all my life.”
“She smiles more, she’s more active, she’s happy.”
Advocate Children’s is one of two hospitals doing pediatric heart transplants in the Chicago area. The other is Lurie Children’s Hospital.
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