Devastation and devotion: A father faces his daughter’s difficult diagnosis

Fifteen years ago, days before her graduation from kindergarten, Shannon O’Donnell played in the hallway of Boston Children’s Hospital while cardiologist Dr. John K. Triedman broke the news to her parents Bill and Laura O’Donnell. Shannon’s recent fainting spells were not due to asthma or a vasovagal response. Shannon — their happy-go-lucky, active 6-year-old — had idiopathic pulmonary hypertension, abnormally high blood pressure in the arteries of her lungs. Untreated, pulmonary hypertension causes the heart muscle to weaken and eventually fail completely. There was— and still is— no known cause and no known cure. Bill and Laura were shocked. Before arriving at Boston Children’s, the O’Donnells had been told that the fainting episodes were not a big concern and could even be Shannon looking for attention. “It took Dr. Triedman three or four times to tell us before it sunk in,” remembers Bill. “He finally had to look us straight in the eye and tell us that our daughter could die from this disease. We were devastated.” The right care for pulmonary hypertension Triedman had one piece of good news for the O’Donnells, and her name was Dr. Mary Mullen. A pulmonary hypertension specialist, Mullen took over Shannon’s care and has been her cardiologist ever since. The first step was for Mullen to confirm the diagnosis with a right-heart catheterization, and then Shannon would need to begin treatment immediately to lessen her symptoms and improve he...
Source: Thrive, Children's Hospital Boston - Category: Pediatrics Authors: Tags: Diseases & Conditions Our Patients’ Stories Family Advisory Council Mary Mullen pulmonary hypertension Source Type: news