Baby Crue’s Medical Expenses

Hi there! We are asking for donations for the Swayne Family (Dusty and Amie) and their first child, Crue. At two weeks old, Crue was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, more specifically an atrioventricular septal defect (AVSD), mitral valve cleft causing severe regurgitation, small patent ductus arterioles and a small hole in his atrium. He was treated at Nationwide Children’s hospital for his condition with lots of care and medicine, and was able to return home just after turning one month old. At seven weeks old, Crue’s condition worsened and he was admitted back into Nationwide Children’s Hospital for respiratory distress. After much discussion with the cardiologists and heart surgeons, it was decided that Crue would need to go ahead and have his heart repaired much sooner than initially anticipated. On 4/8/22, Crue underwent his first open heart surgery to repair the hole in his heart associated with his AVSD, and tissue repair associated with his mitral valve. Due to Crue’s age and size, the mitral valve was improved from its severe state, but only moderately so and thus Crue will require additional open heart surgery and a mitral valve replacement within the next year. We anticipate Crue will need several additional open heart surgeries throughout his childhood to replace his mitral valve as the materials used will not grow with his heart. Crue is fighting hard, any donations received will go toward paying for his medical care to help relieve his family so they can spend time helping this little one grow big and strong for the next surgery.

A little more about Crue’s heart: An atrioventricular septal defect (AVSD) is a heart defect in which there are holes between the chambers of the right and left sides of the heart, and the valves that control the flow of blood between these chambers may not be formed correctly. In AVSD, blood flows where it normally should not go. The blood may also have a lower than normal amount of oxygen, and extra blood can flow to the lungs. This extra blood being pumped into the lungs forces the heart and lungs to work hard and may lead to congestive heart failure. This is when the mitral valve does not close all the way so that it allows blood to flow backwards through the valve. A leaky mitral valve can cause the heart to work harder to get enough blood to the rest of the body. Crue will have regular follow-up visits with a cardiologist (a heart doctor) to monitor his progress, avoid complications, and check for other health conditions that might develop as he gets older. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that about 2,118 babies (1 in 1,859 babies) are born with AVSD every year in the United States.