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Year
2007 |
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Dose of Viagra saves an infant
February 15, 2007
A dramatic recovery was staged by an infant after
being seriously ill and after being given a dose of viagra.
The condition of Lewis Goodfellow, born at 24 weeks, was so severe
that his parents - Jade Goodfellow and John Barclay, from Walker,
Newcastle - started making funeral plans.
But he is now at home and his parents said yesterday that the drug
had saved his life.
Lewis was born on Aug 16 last year weighing 1lb 8oz. At barely more
than a day old, Lewis's lung collapsed, and doctors then discovered
that a duct in his heart had not closed; meaning blood was not being
pumped around his body properly.
Surgeons stitched the duct but his lungs were still struggling to
get oxygen into his blood supply.
At that point doctors tried Sildenafil - its trade name is Viagra
- and Lewis's lung began to improve because the drug opened up some
of the blood vessels in lungs that were not working properly.
It is quite a new treatment and there a requirement of at least
24 hour oxygen by Lewis.
Miss. Goodfellow said; that Lewis is doing quite well and is on
his road to recovery.
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