A baby who was born with “half a heart” will spend his first Christmas at home with his mum and dad after being discharged from hospital in time for the festive season.
Louis Parker Smith, now nearly one, will be doted on by parents Josh Smith, 21, and Ellie Atkinson, 20, following a gruelling year that included long stays in medical care and accommodation for the whole family. During that time, Louis has undergone surgery about five times, which was needed to treat him for hypoplastic right heart syndrome - meaning an underdeveloped heart on one side.
Louis is now home in Widnes with his parents for his first Christmas, one that would never have happened had Ellie and Josh accepted initial advice at 20 weeks of pregnancy from a previous, unidentified medical establishment that the only option was termination. Having rejected that, Ellie was transferred to the care of Liverpool Women’s Hospital, where Louis was born at 8lb 2oz.
