Baby with a hole in his heart need your help

Help as indigent parents shop for N3.7m to save their son culled from THE SUN

Life must be miserable for Mr. Adeyemi’s family as they watch  their nine-month old child battle with a life-threatening ailment, even as they have no power to render any help?

That is the fate of Mr. and Mrs. Sakiru Oyetunji Adeyemi, a civil servant based in Sokoto State.

Each day, they appear very helpless even though they sincerely wish to save their little son from his current predicament.

Master Muhammad Mujahid currently lies on his sick bed in the pediatric unit of Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto.

He was diagnosed, as having a hole in his heart, which, according to medical findings, could only be closed through an open-heart surgery.

Right from his birth, little Mujahid has been suffering from shortness of breath. As a result of the ailment, he cannot play or crawl like a normal child of his age. Little Mujahid has also stopped putting on weight.

A visit to the children’s ward where he is on admission exposed the pathetic condition of the toddler.

In an interview with the reporter, Mujahid’s father recalled that their son’s predicament started one-week after his birth. He was immediately rushed to a private hospital for treatment. But to their utmost disbelief, he was discovered to be having cardiac disorder (heart disease) after tests.

“We got to know about the problem around June last year, just two months after his birth, although, we have been running around, concerning his health since he was a-week old,” he noted.

Ever since, the little boy and his parents have been in and out of the hospital, seeking medications that could subdue the pains and other distress symptoms occasioned by his condition.

In an emotion-laden voice, Mr. Adeyemi said: “He was first admitted at Sokoto clinic, a private hospital before we were referred to the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto. Ever since, he has being on medication to subdue the pains.

“I cannot even quantify how much I have spent since we discovered the problem. All my savings are gone and I’m still owing, just to make sure the child gets back to normal.”

In a move to save Master Mujahid from the life threatening ailment, Dr. Usman M. Sani, a Consultant Paediatrician and Paediatric Cardiologist, under whom he was admitted, had written a reference letter to the Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases in India.

The letter, written through the Teaching Hospital in Sokoto, detailed how a surgical heart operation could be carried out in a bid to correct Mujahid’s heart abnormality.

The institute is a medical mission based at Chennai in India, and renowned for its expertise in surgical operations relating to heart diseases.

But the Indian hospital would be able to help only if the parents could part with N3.7 million. The amount covers both the medical bill and other sundry expenses, including the return tickets.

According to medical experts, the open-heart operation consists sof correction of the Mitral Valve defect, as well as the removal of obstructing membrane.

But getting the needed money is now a major issue. The indigent parents, who hail from Oyo State, are appealing to kind-hearted Nigerians to come to their aid and help get the boy back to a normal life.

“Those willing to help us can reach me on 08034449862. Details of my account are: Adeyemi Sakiru Oyetunji, GTBank 0136442094.

“We have put our hope in Almighty God. We are also appealing to all well meaning Nigerians to help us out of this situation. Though it seems all hopes have been dashed, we still believe that God can raise people to help us out of this challenge so that our little boy will not die,” said the distraught father.