ONE-year old John Mandy Perez, who was reported last year to be suffering from an abnormal connection between his two major heart blood vessels, has successfully undergone a recent operation.
Perez, according to his parents Amado and Elena, is now recovering from the operation he had at the Kapiolanni Children’s Medical Center in Hawaii on March 18.
The baby was confined last year at the Commonwealth Health Center.
At his tender age, Perez needed a heart surgery after he was detected during birth with “patent ductus arteriosus,” an abnormal connection between the two major blood vessels leaving the heart.
Otherwise, he would continue to develop slowly, tire quickly, catch pneumonia easily and breathe rapidly.
“We are very thankful to all those who helped us. We have a very long list of names and institutions. Without them, our son would still have severe difficulty in breathing,” said his father, a janitor in a household in Papago.
Gov. Juan N. Babauta personally visited Perez and all the other CNMI medical referral patients in Hawaii during the third week of March, and hosted a dinner party for them and their escorts.
“I think the governor’s assurance helped a lot,” said his mother who was with him during the operation.
Experts said that after a medical repair, a child with patent ductus arteriosus will become normal.
Without undergoing operation, the child’s heart will continue to work harder. This means more blood will go to the lungs and they may be congested.
“After the operation, he has been very active and seems to catch up because obviously, his development is late. He still can’t walk at his age, unlike others. But CDAC assured us they will continue to provide him with therapy services. We know he can do it,” said his mother.
Perez, however, needs to be checked on every sixth month by a cardiologist to monitor his progress.
His parents last year turned to Variety to ask for the community’s assistance in raising funds to cover for all expenses.
Right after the publication of the baby’s ordeal, help started to come in without which the Perez family would have to raise about $50,000 to take care of their son’s medical problem.
His parents are preparing a post-birthday and welcoming party this Sunday at their residence in Dandan. Perez turned one year old on March 12.
