Donate to Fatima Tul Zahra for Her Cardiac Surgery
Fatima Tul Zahra's Story
A little while ago, 11-month-old Fatima Zahra wouldn’t stop crying due to fever and stomach pain. Her worried parents took her to the emergency room where it was found out that she has hepatitis B. The hospital started her treatment course. Soon after, she recovered from the illness. Something about her condition, however, was still amiss.
“When her treatment ended, we thought Fatima would start becoming healthier and more energetic. But her movements were lethargic. She refused to eat anything we gave her and just cried if we tried to force her to eat or play. We had assumed that these were also symptoms of hepatitis. When they didn’t go away even after treatment, we decided to visit the doctor once more. It was then that we found out that her lethargy has to do with her heart.” – Fatima’s father, Khalid Nawaz.
When Fatima’s pediatrician ran her ECHO report, he discovered that she has a moderate to large patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). When a baby is in the womb, there is a direct connection between two main blood vessels in the baby’s heart. This enables a developing fetus to receive oxygen without using the lungs. After birth, when the child starts using the lungs, this connection closes up. If it doesn’t, oxygen-lacking blood starts mixing with oxygen-rich blood, causing the efficacy of circulation to decrease. If the open connection is sizable, a patient exhibits symptoms such as low energy, rapid breathing, poor growth, and poor eating. In Fatima’s case, the gap is moderately large and requires a PDA device closure surgery.
Khalid is a daily wager who earns around 13,000 PKR a month. 2500 PKR are spent on renting the small space that he lives in with his daughter and wife. On his paycheck, even basic facilities are hard to afford on some days.
“Something is wrong with my only daughter’s heart and the only way to sort it out is through an expensive surgery that I cannot even dream of affording. It felt like receiving two shocks at once. I was depressed for several days before I started thinking clearly. Then I tried everywhere, contacted every single resource that I could possibly think of for help. My search led me to Transparent Hands, I met with them and I am filled with hope that they would come to my daughter’s aid.”– Khalid Nawaz
Don’t let a father’s hope fade. Let us come together to make sure Fatima gets the necessary surgery for a long healthy life.
Please donate to Fatima.
Please Note: In certain situations, we proceed with the patient's surgery/medical procedure despite incomplete funding displayed on the website. Following the surgery/medical procedure, we persist in collecting funds and maintain the campaign on the website until funding is secured in full. Hospitals have granted us a grace period for bill payment.
Fatima Tul Zahra's Story
Fatima tul Zahra, 1-year-old, was suffering from bluish discoloration of her skin. She was diagnosed to have patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). She was advised device occlusion of PDA to prevent her cyanotic spells. Her procedure was done in Ittefaq Hospital, by Dr Najam Haider, on 02-03-20. She was managed well and discharged in a stable condition after one day of hospital stay.