Norton Children’s wants to celebrate the more than 5,000 kids we treat for heart conditions every year. Our staff delivered hats and hugs to heart patients in the “Just for Kids” Pediatric Critical Care Unit. They also received certificates of courage. Special thanks to the Ladies of the Craft Cottage at the Russell Springs Christian…
An electrocardiogram (EKG or ECG) is a painless test used to record the heart’s electrical activity and possibly reveal issues with the heart’s rhythm, such as an arrhythmia or other signs of underlying heart trouble. The EKG test involves placing small electrode patches on the skin. Wires from the electrodes run to the EKG machine….
During many of his 136 days at Norton Children’s Hospital to get a heart transplant, Bryson Justice watched construction workers do renovations. When he was ready to go home, he got a special sendoff from his new friends on the construction crew.
Evan Karr is an active 14-year-old who swims and likes to have fun with his friends. But underneath his brave exterior is a young man who was born with tetralogy of Fallot — a rare condition made up of four heart defects that cause the heart to pump oxygen-poor blood into the body. He is…
One of the rarest and most complicated heart defects found in babies is hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) in which a critical underdevelopment of the left side of the heart leaves the right side doing most of the work. “With hypoplastic left heart syndrome, the left side of the heart can’t effectively pump blood to…
Surviving everything Stella Paul has been through in her one year of life is nothing short of a miracle. But her biggest miracle came on July 23, 2018, when a family made the difficult decision to donate their child’s heart. Norton Children’s Heart Institute Learn more about Norton Children’s Heart Institute, affiliated with the University…
Two-year-old Gift Mbwali and her mother traveled more than 7,600 miles from their home in Uganda to Norton Children’s Heart Institute, affiliated with the University of Louisville, where surgeons repaired a heart defect she has lived with since birth. Her family was well aware of the high stakes. Her older brother, Patrick, made the same…
When a parent has a newborn, child or teen with a congenital heart condition that needs surgery, they want to know where the operation should happen and which hospital has a record of success. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) operates a database that rates congenital heart programs based on patients’ outcomes. Users can look…
Philmore Jackson III, is a courageous young man whose medical journey has taken many twists and turns. By age 3, Philmore, who goes by P.J., had been near death many times. By many accounts, there wasn’t much hope for him to live to his fourth birthday. Born in 2014 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, P.J. was…
Bahaaldin Alsoufi, M.D., was a teenager growing up in Damascus, Syria, when his father collapsed from a heart attack. The 16-year-old watched with uncertainty and fear as his father was treated at a local hospital and later in the United States. Grateful and relieved to see him recover, he vowed to pursue a profession in…
The event Eight-month-old Stella is one of Norton Children’s Hospital’s tiny patients waiting for a new heart. Her family is aiming to raise $50,000 for the new Jennifer Lawrence Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU). They are hosting a yoga fundraiser, “Stretch for Stella.” The event will be held on Saturday, July 21, from 12:30 to…
Julie Spry called “The Kane Show,” a national radio show, three times before she finally got through. She shared the story of how people were helping her mark what would’ve been her son’s 10th birthday. Julie wanted to honor his memory in the new Jennifer Lawrence Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU). Julie’s late son, Brady…