A six-day old premature baby has become the youngest infant to receive a heart transplant at a US hospital, doctors and her proud parents say.
Baby Oliver Crawford underwent the operation at Phoenix Children's Hospital in Arizona after being born seven weeks ahead of schedule with a heart defect, which meant his parents didn't expect him to survive.
"The doctors had very little hope that he would survive the pregnancy, and when our water broke at 33 weeks, we were prepared to deliver a still born baby," said Caylyn Otto, the infant's mother.
"But he came out fighting," she added in a statement released by the hospital on Thursday.
The baby is recovering in hospital after being born on January 5.
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His mother and father Chris Crawford were first alerted to the problem after a prenatal exam at 20 weeks showed a defect in the tiny baby's heart, called dilated cardiomyopathy, which meant his heart was weakened, enlarged and unable to pump blood efficiently.
It was confirmed four weeks later.
"The left ventricle was huge for a 24-week-old," paediatric cardiologist Dr Christopher Lindblade told the Arizona Republic, adding: "It was massive."
Doctors told the couple there was a slim chance for a transplant. They prepared Caylyn and Chris for the worst, the Arizona Republic reported.
Caylyn planned Oliver's funeral. She chose the baptismal gown she wanted him to be buried in and bought him a tiny gold bracelet and had his name engraved on it.
The couple cleared their home of toys, diapers and anything that would remind them that their baby might not come home.
Doctors planned for a birth at 36 weeks, but Otto went into labour at 33 weeks.
Within hours of the birth the baby was screened to see if he was healthy enough for a heart transplant. He was put on a national transplant waiting list on January 9, and two days later a viable heart became available.
The operation lasted 10 hours, after which he had an incision from his belly to his chest.
"From our understanding Oliver is the youngest recipient in the nation. He received his transplant at 34 weeks and 3 days gestation," said his mother.
The baby remains in hospital and his lungs remain weak, but he is doing "amazingly well" at 6.1 pounds (2.77kg) to the hospital.
"It is amazing, after expecting the worst, Oliver is indeed a miracle," said the baby's father.
