The Fontan Pathway Film – explaining the surgical treatments available for single ventricle heart conditions.
When a family are given the diagnosis that their, often unborn, child has just half a working heart they are left reeling with the knowledge that their child has a condition that cannot be cured. Gradually they will learn more about their child’s heart and the palliative treatments that might be available to give their child a chance of life.
Little Hearts Matter works to help families at every stage of their life with a single ventricle heart condition, offering support, information and advocacy.
Over the last year the charity team have created a series of new films. The first set describe the different heart conditions. The film we are highlighting today explains the different types of surgery that may be offered at stage one, two and three of treatment and how the operations link together to create the Fontan pathway.
We hope that families already on the Half a Heart journey will find the film helpful in explaining their child’s surgery and that doctors and nurses will use it to help them explain the types of surgery that might be possible for their patients.