PHOENIX (AP) – Caylyn Otto bought a bracelet for her unborn son, but not for his baptism.
“I pictured it being on an urn or being buried with him,” Otto said. “I never thought he’d get to wear it.”
But now instead of planning his funeral, the Mesa, Arizona dental assistant can start planning her son’s future. Born nearly seven weeks early, Oliver became one of the youngest heart transplant recipients at Phoenix Children’s Hospital last month. He will need to be hospitalized a few more weeks. But doctors say Oliver, who was due Feb. 20, has been doing remarkably well post-transplant.
“He immediately looked like a new baby,” said father Chris Crawford, a pizza delivery driver.
Otto said doctors noticed about 20 weeks into her pregnancy that Oliver’s heart was significantly enlarged. At an appointment a month later, the heart had only gotten bigger. The couple, who have a 20-month-old son, was then told to be prepared for their baby possibly being still-born or to consult with hospice caregivers.