Carmine's Story

By: Marisol Reimund

Our heart warrior, Carmine, was born on September 26, 2017; healthy as can be! Everything was absolutely perfect until he was about 6 weeks old. 

Carmine had this different cry; a painful cry, not the typical "hungry or wet" newborn cry. That cry was followed by extreme sweating, along with multiple pediatrician visits, who cleared him each time. Fast forward to 7.5 weeks old, Carmine lost his appetite. As a seasoned nursing mom, I knew something was wrong. Our pediatrician called in some meds and we continued to monitor him throughout the day. Then my mom-intuition took over and I decided to take him to the ER. 

We arrived at the Hospital and once again he was able to be soothed and calmed down.  After a chest x-ray and a series of tests, the ER doctor told us that Carmine would need to be transferred for further testing. While waiting for the DuPont Ambulance team to arrive, Carmine went into Cardiac Arrest. At that exact moment, DuPont's emergency response team arrived, resuscitated him, and got him stable enough to transport him to Nemours/Alfred I, DuPont Hospital for Children. That is where we were informed that something was wrong with Carmine's heart.  

Further testing was done and we found out Carmine had a Coarctation of his Aortic Valve along with a Bicuspid Aortic Valve.  After two days of getting Carmine stable and healthy enough for surgery, Dr. Christian Pizarro performed open heart surgery to save our heart warrior.  After three weeks in the hospital working with OT, PT, and a Speech therapist, our boy grew stronger and was discharged with minimal medication.

Fast forward to now, 2-year-old Carmine is a  BLESSED, STRONG, HEART WARRIOR! Thanks to the amazing team at A.I. DuPont, along with all of the advanced technology, my heart warrior is thriving and living his best second chance at LIFE! This is why raising money for this amazing foundation is dear to our hearts. With all of the advanced technology and studies, Heart Warriors all around the world are able to have another chance at life!

Our team - Carmine's Conquerors - is walking at the Philadelphia Congenital Heart Walk to raise critical funds for congenital heart defect research!