Rizhna had her first echo at Sheba Hospital this morning. It was not without its difficulties, as she is very afraid of doctors and was not pleased by the echo procedure. It soon became clear that she would need some sedation medicine to help her stay calm enough for the echo. Once she got this, the whole procedure became much easier, and the echo tech and two cardiologists were able to get nearly 200 images of her heart.
Rizhna’s situation is a bit complicated. She has multiple heart defects, including pulmonary stenosis and a complete connection between all four chambers of her heart. Additionally, she has some severe developmental delays. These are likely caused by a syndrome that could have caused her heart defects as well.
Rizhna’s cardiologists will discuss her case at their meeting at the beginning of next week and let us know what the next steps are. They expect that she will need a diagnostic cath, a cardiac CT, and some dental repairs before she is ready for surgery.