Stories of Our Pediatric Heart Heroes

Georgie, aheart surgery patientGeorgie’s story

Avid soccer player Georgie, 12, received a visit from Sacramento Republic FC players Rodrigo Lopez and Cristian Gonzalez, two days after his heart surgery. Georgie was diagnosed with atrial septal defect with a partial anomalous pulmonary venous return and had a successful heart surgery at UC Davis Children's Hospital.

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Owen, a catheterization patientOwen’s story

When 2-year-old Owen Rinek had two aneuryms and alarmingly high blood pressure, Dr. Frank Ing, chief of pediatric cardiology, performed two non-surgical catheterizations, which improved blood flow to the kidneys and shrunk one aneurym to nothing.

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Brooke, a heart surgery patientBrooke’s story

When Brooke Peoples was 1 year old, she was diagnosed with a double aortic arch, a rare congenital cardiovascular malformation. She had begun to experience difficulty swallowing solid food, resulting in poor weight gain. Following surgery, Brooke no longer had any constriction in her trachea. She was able to eat without problems and gain the weight that she needed.

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