Help Mend Baby Trinity's Heart

Hello all, I am writing this on behalf of a family that is very dear to my heart. We are close friends with Pastor Les and Tisa Cole. Their daughter, Taylor, and her husband, Ty Runge, are expecting their first child, a daughter named Trinity, on Valentine's Day. This week, they received devastating news - Trinity has a rare congenital heart defect known as Double Inlet Left Ventricle (DILV). Essentially, she will be born with only one ventricle instead of 2, causing blood to be circulated throughout her body that will not provide her cells with needed oxygen. (See more details below).

Current Situation

Taylor is 35 weeks pregnant and will deliver Trinity at Texas Children's Hospital on February 14. Immediately following birth, Trinity will have her first of several open-heart surgeries.

Taylor and Ty are temporarily moving to Houston. Taylor is taking an unpaid leave of absence from her teaching job this week and is heading to Houston tomorrow. They need help, friends!

How you can help

You can impact Ty and Taylor's journey in a few ways. They would greatly appreciate your financial assistance along with prayer or written letters to Baby Trinity. They will be using funds for travel, lodging, and medical expenses, as well as the unforeseen expenses that lay ahead. The loss of income has caused an emotional and financial toll because what this diagnosis brings is unimaginable. We believe God's glory will be displayed through Baby Trinity's life and the Cole/Runge family. As His people, let us pour out our hearts to help Baby Trinity.

Important

Please pray for healing and recovery for Trinity, the family, and their journey. Please share this with as many others as possible. No words can express how much the family appreciates all the love, prayers, and support! Any amount of help will be greatly appreciated.

Psalms 62:8 is their anthem: "Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our refuge."

Updates will be provided.

Medical Details

Double inlet left ventricle (DILV) is a complex congenital heart defect in which the upper chambers of the baby's heart (the left and right atria) are connected to the same lower chamber – the left ventricle. The baby's right ventricle is small and underdeveloped.

The ventricles are the heart's pumping chambers. Babies with double inlet left ventricle have only one developed or working pumping chamber (the left ventricle).

Treatment

Surgery is needed to improve blood circulation through the body and into the lungs. The most common surgeries to treat DILV are a series of two to three operations. The first surgery will be a modified Blalock-Taussig (BT) shunt to increase blood flow to the lungs.

The second surgery, the bidirectional Glenn, usually occurs when babies are 4 to 6 months old. During this procedure, blood from the upper part of the body (head, neck, arms) is directed straight to the lungs to allow the blood to become oxygenated without passing through the heart. This lessens the workload of the left ventricle. The superior vena cava is disconnected from the heart and connected directly to the pulmonary artery during this procedure.

The third surgery is called the Fontan procedure. This surgery aims to direct blood from the lower part of the body directly to the lungs. While it does not create normal circulation, it does improve blood flow enough for the child to live and grow.

More surgeries may be necessary, including the possibility of a heart transplant, if the above methods fail.

DILV affects about 5 in every 100,000 babies.