Two-year old Tahlia owes her life to a new surgical procedure pioneered by Professor Martin Elliott, Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery and Chairman of Cardiac Services at Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Tahlia was treated by Professor Elliot for a rare congenital condition called Long Segment Tracheal Stenosis (LSTS). This is a condition where the trachea (windpipe) is so narrow that breathing has been compared to running a 100m sprint while breathing through a straw.
Tahlia underwent a five hour operation to shorten and widen her narrowed windpipe and resite a major blood vessel, which was hooked around her trachea. "Tahlia’s feeding tube was removed and she quickly recovered her appetite," explained dad Paul. She has regular checks at Great Ormond Street Hospital and her local hospital.
Her breathing is not perfect but her trachea is much stronger. Paul has himself become an accomplished fundraiser, completing a half-marathon and a triathlon to raise money for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity.
Long Segment Tracheal Stenosis (LSTS) affects one child in every 5 million. Previously this fatal condition went undetected, however, thanks to Professor Elliott and his team at Great Ormond Street Hospital, who pioneered this new technique, we have successfully treated 30 children since 2002. As the condition and our service become better known we anticipate that we will perform 12 such operations a year.
Professor Elliott is now training other medical teams across the world to carry out this procedure.
