Mohammed had his arterial switch surgery today. His mother was pleased, and surrounded by her group of Kurdish moms in the hospital all day. They are an encouraging group of ladies, and helped Mohammed’s mum to feel good throughout the day.
The surgery lasted just over six hours. Mohammed was eventually brought out in the big hospital bed, and his mother sped upstairs to greet her baby who was being transferred back to the ICU.
The doctor told us that it had been a difficult surgery, and that whilst it had been successful to complete the switch of the arteries, the contraction of the heart was quite weak. It means that they made the decision to keep his chest open, in case the heart becomes even weaker, and they need to put him onto the ECMO machine.
His mother received and understood the news with emotion and strength. She was encouraged by another Kurdish mother, whose baby is also with his chest open, but she was of course upset that Mohammed is not in the best condition as she had hoped before the surgery.
We hope and pray that the heart will become stronger and that they will be able to close the chest in the next week.