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Dec 23, 2008 7:17 pm US/Eastern
Boy Born With Heart Outside His Chest Thrives
MIAMI (CBS4) ―
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Only months after his surgery, Nassem Hasni is an energetic little boy, and even though he still has a long way to go, the operation to put his heart inside his chest was successful.
CBS
Naseem Hasni made headlines around the world two years ago, when he was born with his heart outside his chest. Now, he's breathing on his own, only months after a surgery to rebuild a major part of his body.
Naseem was born on Halloween 2006 at the Holtz Children's Hospital at the University of Miami. He had a rare and often fatal abnormality called ectopia cordis.
Ectopia cordis is a deformation where the sternum--the breastbone that protects the heart, lungs and major blood vessel--does not form properly. Because of this, the heart develops outside the chest wall.
Immediately after Naseem's birth, doctors performed a surgery to put his heart into his chest. They could not replace or close the sternum, though, because he was so tiny the effort would have squeezed his heart and lungs.
In March 2008, surgeons closed his chest.
"We used the ribs from the left side of his chest," said Dr. Zubin Panthaki. "We used every second rib and we used that to make a new breast bone, and that let him get the ability to develop the muscles to eventually breathe on his own again."
Tuesday Naseem smiled, danced and waved for the news cameras at a news conference to showcase his recovery.
"He's doing good," said Michelle Hasni, Naseem's mom. "I mean, he's more active than my other kids were when they were this age. He's into everything; he's learned to open doors and is very demanding."
Naseem still has a tube in his throat that he hooks up to a breathing machine at night. He also has a feeding tube on his abdomen. Doctors say both of those tubes should be able to be removed in less than a year.
"He's a joy to have," said his mom. "He brightens our day no matter how upset you feel. You just look at him and you just thank God that he's still here and he's doing as good as he is."
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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