VADs 101: Lifesaving Heart Devices

The language of medicine is full of complicated words and acronyms. For parents of children with serious heart conditions like congenital heart disease or pulmonary hypertension, one such acronymn that may incite fear or worry is hearing that their child may need a device called a VAD (Ventricular Assist Device). However, these devices, combined with […]

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Study Aims to Increase the Life of Organs After Transplant, Uses High-Tech Pill Box

It can be hard enough to remember to take a multivitamin every day; imagine having to take 20 pills at specific times throughout the day, every day, for your whole life. That’s the reality individuals who have undergone an organ transplant must face. In order to stay healthy and to keep their bodies from rejecting […]

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3-D Printed Heart Model Makes Complicated Surgeries Possible

Kami Sutton, 26, who you met last week, has been waiting for a heart transplant for five years. But surgeons at Seattle Children’s and University of Washington Medical Center (UWMC) are now preparing to perform a difficult surgery that could greatly improve her quality of life and may even eliminate her need for a transplant. […]

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Kami Shares her Congenital Heart Defect Journey, Reflects on Her “Home”

In honor of Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) Awareness Week, 26-year-old Kami Sutton wanted to share her journey that began at Seattle Children’s the day she was born. Seattle Children’s is my home. From the previously trademark blue bubble letters, the giraffes (which were recently replaced in the remodel), trains and Mickey Mouse – it is […]

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Seattle Children’s Leads Nation in Heart Transplant Survival Rates

Children who need a heart transplant face a frightening waiting game before a donor heart becomes available. They must live with a failing heart for months, or even years, as clinicians strive to keep them healthy enough for transplant. Nationally, these patients face the highest waiting list mortality in solid-organ transplantation medicine, with 17% of children […]

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Seattle Children’s Aims to Unravel the Mysteries of Kawasaki Disease

In honor of National Kawasaki Disease Awareness Day, we are sharing the story of William, a 10-year-old boy who lives with the disease, and why Seattle Children’s, an international leader in Kawasaki disease research, is the best place for children like William to receive treatment. In September, Jennifer Bevaart’s son William developed a fever that […]

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Sarah Wins $100,000 Scholarship, Showcases Football Skills After Spinal Fusion

The Pac-12 Football Championship Game featuring the Oregon Ducks and the Arizona Wildcats was more than just a football game to 18-year-old Sarah Roundtree, a freshman at the University of Oregon. It was the chance of a lifetime: a shot to win a $100,000 scholarship. The only catch to winning, she had to compete against […]

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Pushing Limits, Saving Lives

As we head into the New Year, we’d like to reflect on some of the incredible clinical advancements of 2014 that show how our doctors have gone the extra mile for our patients. In the Children’s HealthLink Special video above, watch how futuristic medicine has saved the lives of the littlest patients at Seattle Children’s. From 3D-printed heart models to liquid ventilation, doctors […]

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