Meet March's Legendairy Little, Burton

At birth, Burton was born not breathing. This caused him to be immediately admitted to the NICU in another hospital. Once there, he was put on “cooling” to offset any brain swelling. It took 24 minutes before Burton was able to breathe on his own. 

At ten days old, Burton had an MRI to see if there were any lasting effects from his traumatic birth. Thankfully, there were no signs of brain swelling or trauma to his brain. However, there also came additional news that his family was not prepared to receive. The doctors found an abnormality in Burton’s brain called the Vein of Galen Malformation. 

The Vein of Galen Malformation is an abnormal connection between a vein and an artery that supplies the brain. With this, the brain receives too much blood while the blood leaving the brain can be restricted. This can, in turn, put a strain on the heart causing it to work too hard. Burton has the best prognosis because he does not have severe symptoms or brain symptoms. Thankfully his echocardiogram has shown that his heart has spared any negative impact so far. 

Had it not been for his traumatic birth, this condition may not have been noticed and would have caused greater problems going forward. Burton has to travel out of state to see his medical team. He has been able to connect with a doctor who has experience operating on this condition. In December, Burton had his first major surgery where doctors were able to close one of the arteries feeding the malformation. Doctors anticipate that he will need four additional surgeries on his brain to close each artery. 

In his free time, Burton loves to give kisses to his Mom, watch hockey with his Dad, and Facetime with cousins. He loves exploring the exciting sounds that his voice can make while playing in his activity center. Burton is also enjoying finding all of the different textures to chew on as more teeth grow in.