Parents took their 15-month-old son to York Hospital with an infected finger – and found he had heart disease.

Friday, 21 February 2025 17:59

By Dylan Connell

Olivia Abbott and Callum Raywood, from Easingwold, said a nurse told them their son, Zak, had a heart murmur while being checked over at the hospital.

He was later diagnosed with congenital heart disease (CHD), which covers a range of birth defects that affect the normal way the heart works.

Olivia said the murmur "took us by surprise” as she and Callum were unaware of it.

The murmur was still there a week later, so Zak was referred for an echocardiogram to check his heart.

Olivia said that appointment in June 2023 “would turn our world upside down”.

“The ultrasound tech said that Zak had a large ventricular septal defect (VSD) and a leaking valve, however the specialist wasn’t going to be in the hospital for us to speak to until the end of July 2023.

“We nervously awaited this appointment and were told that Zak would need to have open heart surgery in the next six to 12 months to close the VSD.”

Zak, now three, underwent open heart surgery at Leeds General Infirmary on January 3, last year.

“I remember the day Zak had his surgery like it was yesterday,” Olivia said.

“I remember waiting around for what felt like a lifetime waiting to hear that he was out of surgery and rushing straight to paediatric intensive care (PICU) as soon as we heard.

“Seeing my little boy with so many wires, tubes and drains coming out of him whilst completely unconscious is an image that will never leave my mind.”

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