When 苏李 was just seven years old, he found out he had a 心杂音, caused by a 先天性心脏缺陷.
的 心杂音 was discovered at a routine check-up after Lee was in a car accident with a family member.
Unfortunately, Lee didn’t have access to the needed medical expertise to fix his heart. 李在美属萨摩亚出生并长大, 当他年轻的时候, there was limited access to surgical services in his area. 的 only option was to travel to Hawaii to have a doctor perform the surgery there.
“大发娱乐没能修好它，”李说. “我的护照过期了, 等到大发娱乐可以选择去夏威夷的时候, 那时我还在上高中. I also don’t think my parents or I realized how important it was that we get this fixed.”
Lee continued on with his life and lived with the 心杂音 for many years while experiencing few issues. He played some sports and hit the gym without noticing any major symptoms.
In 2018, Lee had the opportunity to leave American Samoa and come to the United States. He first volunteered for the Red Cross in North Carolina after Hurricane Michael.
When I got to the United States and saw what it was like, 我记得当时在想, “也许来到大发娱乐会改变我的生活.
Lee’s aunt worked at a turkey factory in Ephraim, Utah, so he left South Carolina to join her. For the next year, Lee worked with his aunt at the turkey factory. 的 work was physically demanding, and he started experiencing painful symptoms.
“I started having sharp pains in my chest, so I drove to Salt Lake for a checkup,” Lee said. “医生告诉了我一些我已经知道的事情. 那是心脏杂音.”
Soon after his trip to Salt Lake City, he and his aunt decided to relocate there. He got a new job and was symptom-free for the next three years. 然后，在2022年，他突然出现了症状.
“I started to feel numb in my left leg,” Lee said. “我醒了，试着走路，但我走不动. It went away long enough for me to get to work, but then the numbness returned.”
李去了医院, where doctors completed a thorough assessment and Lee ended up staying for two weeks.
他们发现他有一个大的 房间隔缺损（ASD）.
“It was starting to impact the blood flow to my brain, causing a small 中风 影响了我的左腿，”李说.
Because of insurance issues, Lee was then referred to see Vikas Sharma，医学博士他是犹他大学的教授. Dr. Sharma is a cardiothoracic surgeon who has been at the U for more than five years and has special interest in adults with 先天性心脏病.
被推荐去看医生. Sharma and the U was a great opportunity for me,” Lee said.
Sharma told Lee what he already knew: he had an atrial septal defect that was causing a 心杂音. It had led to right heart enlargement and hypertrophy.
“An atrial septal defect is basically a hole between the upper chambers of the heart,夏尔马说. “这是一种非常常见的先天性心脏缺陷.” Most of these defects are diagnosed and corrected in childhood, but some 病人s like Lee have been living with this defect for so long. “After meeting Su, I recommended that he have the surgery as soon as possible.”
在这一点上，李同意了.
我非常想做这个手术. 我很害怕我会再次中风.
2022年10月，夏尔马和 Craig Selzman，医学博士他使用 机器人平台 through a very small incision in right chest with a patch.
“手术花了7个小时，”李说. “But when I woke up, it felt like nothing had happened. 的n I started coughing and feeling pain and knew they must have done it.”
This less invasive technique is effective and speeds up post-surgery recovery.
“通常, 如果你给一个做过心脏手术的病人做胸骨切开术, they need at least four weeks of down time after surgery,夏尔马说. “的 difference in the recovery with this approach is quite stark. Su was able to get back to activity in just a few weeks after surgery.”
Lee spent four days in the hospital before returning home. In the months since his surgery, he has noticed a dramatic difference in his physical health.
Before surgery, Lee struggled to build muscle or gain weight. Now, he is at a much healthier weight and has the energy he needs to live a full life.
Now I’m running, I move a lot, and I take my dogs out to the park all the time. I work full time at Amazon, lifting boxes nonstop. 我可以很好地呼吸，我可以屏住呼吸. 我感觉好多了，我真的松了一口气.
In the months following his surgery, Lee and his girlfriend have been getting out more. 的y went on a camping trip in the fall and took a road trip to Twin Falls, Idaho. Lee now enjoys playing the sports he has missed for so long. He and his girlfriend frequently visit their local park to go running and play soccer.
李的转变超越了身体. He has also noticed a positive shift in his overall mental health.
“Before surgery, I would get angry really easily,” he said. “I don’t know why, but I haven’t felt anything like that since the surgery. 我觉得我的生活改变了很多. 我觉得自己焕然一新了.”
More positive life changes are coming for Lee and his girlfriend as they prepare to welcome a baby in the coming months.
“大发娱乐真的很兴奋，”李说. “I’m so glad I got the surgery and am healthy again. 现在我可以陪在孩子身边了.”
Lee is incredibly grateful to have his life back—and for the expert medical care that made this transformation possible.
“Dr. Sharma was really kind and one of the best,” he said. “他大发娱乐我鼓起勇气去做手术. Thanks to him, I wasn’t worried or scared at all on surgery day. 我准备好了. 现在，多亏了他，我的生活又回来了.”
凯蒂·卡莫克为
大发娱乐