How to Heal a Broken Heart

Eventually, most tetralogy patients need to have the pulmonary valve replaced, often in their teens. Doctors knew it was time to replace Kelley’s valve when she went to a clinic visit with her cardiologist this year and said she couldn’t exert herself as much as she once could. An evaluation confirmed enlargement of the right ventricle, which according to McMahon, can increase the risk of heart failure, arrhythmia and death. Valve replacement was necessary, and Kelley knew that likely meant another open-heart surgery and another scar. But in July, doctors informed Kelley and her parents that a new, less-invasive procedure they’d been hearing about for years was finally available. Ten days later, she became the first pediatric patient in the Southeast to receive the Harmony valve. “I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, it’s finally here. I’ve been waiting for this for 16 years,’” Kelley said. “But at the same time, I didn’t know how to feel. I had like no expectations for it whatsoever.” McMahon and his team used a catheter to insert the valve into a vein in Kelley’s right leg. From there, he was able to place it in her heart. With an open-heart surgery, Kelley could have been in the hospital for more than a week. After the Harmony valve procedure, she left the next day. The only scar she’ll have, on her leg, may not even be visible within a few months. “It’s definitely a relief,” Kelley said. “Growing up thinking I’m going to get sliced open once again—that’s just not a fun thing to think about it. But this feels safer, I feel way safer, and it’s really, really good.” McMahon hopes the procedure will help Kelley get back to exercising as much as she wants without limitations. He believes the Harmony valve can improve the lives of many other patients like Kelley, simply because it allows doctors to use a less-invasive path to replace the pulmonary valve. For more information, visit childrensal.org/heart. Below , doctors use a catheter to insert the valve into a vein in the patient’s right leg. From there, doctors are able to place it in the patient’s heart. With an open-heart surgery, Kelley could have been in the hospital for more than a week. After the Harmony valve procedure, she left the next day.

Sixteen-year-old Olivia Kelley is the first pediatric patient in the Southeast to receive the Harmony Transcatheter Pulmonary Valve.