Melissa Wilburn & Baby Otto Benefit

I wanted to share the story of a sweet couple that like many of us decided to start a family. However, unlike many of us this couple was given news that will forever change the life of their unborn son.

Below is thier story:

“At our 20 week doctor’s appointment with Dr. Diegman, our ultrasound tech was concerned with the development of baby Otto’s heart.  We were referred to a Prenatal Specialist, Dr. Brian Brocato with University of South Alabama, who confirmed that we have a problem.  At that point, they were unsure if we were dealing with Coarctation of the Aorta or Interruption of the Aortic Arch.  Additionally, the left ventricle appeared smaller than it should be.  Dr. Brocato referred us to a Pediatric Cardiologist, Dr. Batten, also with USA.  Dr. Batten confirmed that we are in fact dealing with Interruption of the Aortic Arch, which is more serious than Coarctation.  Dr. Batten’s office got us set up with UAB in Birmingham, and we had a visit there a several weeks ago.  There we learned that in addition to Interruption of the Aortic Arch, baby Otto also has a VSD, or hole in his heart between the left and right ventricles.  They remain concerned with the left ventricle, but are hopeful that we will not be facing Hypoplastic Left Ventricle, which could leave the baby with a one-pumping chamber heart versus a two-pumping chamber heart. In that regard, the VSD is a blessing as it is allowing some blood into the left ventricle, which is helping to preserve it.  Baby Otto will require open heart surgery within his first week of life in order to rebuild his aorta and possibly address the VSD.  The surgery is required for his survival.  We are praying that the aortic arch can be rebuilt, that the left ventricle can be preserved, and that he will end up with a two-pumping chamber heart.  

This video provided by Cincinnati Children’s describes Interruption of the Aortic Arch and is very informative:

http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/health/i/iaa/
  
Fortunately this procedure has been very successful in recent history and all indications are that Otto’s heart will be able to be repaired.  The doctors report that limitations on his life are expected to be minimal.  For example, they say that he should be able to play teeball, but will not be able to play football.  One look at us and anyone could tell that he wasn’t going to be playing football anyway, so we can live with that.  Going forward for the rest of our pregnancy, we will be having many doctors’appointments, here in Fairhope, as well as making trips to Mobile and Birmingham.  Should Melissa go into labor in Baldwin County, Otto will have to be life-flighted to Birmingham.  Therefore, in advance of our due date, we will have to travel to UAB in order to be sure that Otto is delivered in a facility that can handle him.  We are being told to expect a minimum of four weeks at UAB in Birmingham, but it will likely be more like five to six weeks after birth.  We have a lot of doctors monitoring Melissa and Otto and we remain optimistic.  After Otto is born, we can get on the list for the Ronald McDonald House for lodging, but we will not know about that for sure until he gets here.

We were ready to begin visiting daycare facilities in the area when we got the news.  So instead of Melissa taking 12 weeks of unpaid maternity and going back to work with the baby in daycare, we will need to explore other options.  We do not yet know if we will find a nanny, someone who does in-home daycare, or if Melissa will need to stay out of work longer.  We do need her income, but more importantly we need her insurance, which is through Bryant Bank and is very good.

We never expected to be those people that we see on the news and on Facebook, but the support from the community has been significant, unexpected, overwhelming, and encouraging all at the same time. We will be forever grateful and appreciative. We know that Otto will live a long and wonderful life, and we will make sure that he knows how our friends and the community pulled together to help make his arrival as comfortable as possible for us, as well make his life possible overall.”

As you can see, there will be many expenses that Will and Melissa can plan for and many that will be unexpected. They will need to cover doctor visits, trips to Birmingham, hotel rooms, food, and other costs associated with Baby Otto. Also, due to the extended time they will need to be in Birmingham and the time Melissa will be out of work they will need to cover normal living expenses including rent, utilities, car payments, etc. As we all know having a young baby is expensive all by itself. However, when you add the additional expenses Will and Melissa are facing, it will be unbearable without our help. 

Thank you for taking time to hear the Wilburn's story and if you have felt the pull on your heart we hope that you will consider donating to Baby Otto's cause.