Brendan Gerard

Brendan was born 1 week before his due date by cesarean
section at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of Columbia
Presbyterian in Manhattan.  When I was 18 weeks pregnant we learned that Brendan had an omphalocele (a defect that causes a portion of the abdominal contents to protrude into the umbilical cord).  As the weeks continued, and after many high level ultrasound tests, we learned that Brendan's intestines, liver, stomach, spleen, and bottom tip of his heart were inside the umbilical cord.  We also learned, at 24 weeks, that he had a large ventricular septal defect in his heart.  We were told that his chest cavity, which contained only his tiny lungs, was so small that we needed an act of God for him to survive.  Brendan had many people praying for him, including several prayer groups that stretched across the country.  On top of all of this, I was told that I had a heart-shaped uterus with a septum in the middle that only allowed the baby half of the uterus to grow inside of.  Women with this type of uterus usually go into labor around the 34th week of their pregnancy.  Labor at that week would have had devastating effects on the baby.  If everything went okay, we expected to spend the better part of a year in the NICU, while Brendan's organs were slowly put back into his body.  Not only did I make it to the date of my scheduled c-section, but Brendan weighed a whopping 8lbs. 2oz., something the doctors were extremely pleased and surprised by.  Brendan endured 5 surgeries in the NICU to put his organs back inside.  He had some feeding issues when he was finally able to eat, but he did very well in the days that followed.  By pure miracle, he came home on December 22, 2003, 3 days before Christmas.  He truly was our Christmas miracle!  He is now 10 months old, and weighs in at 21 pounds.  He is still unable to eat more than 4 ounces at a meal, but he eats every 1 1/2 - 2 hours to make up for it.  Since he came home he has had an inguinal hernia repair, and required a gortex patch in his abdomen to keep his stomach muscles from stretching out.  He has one more inguinal hernia repair to go on the opposite side, which he'll have in December.  He received a clean bill of health from his cardiologist in August, who said that his heart defect has closed enough on its own to not require surgery!  We thank God everyday for his progress, and the many people who prayed for his well-being!  Thank you for letting me tell my story!

Eileen Ortenzi, Mother