Valley 14-year-old Emery Miller undergoes experimental heart procedure
Photographer: KNXV
Copyright 2013 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Posted: 01/31/2013
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By: Katie Raml - By: Brett Silva
PHOENIX - Just by looking at 14-year-old Emery Miller swing his baseball bat, you would never know anything was wrong with him.
However Emery has had quite a unique life. He was born with a congenital heart defect, which left him with a hole in his heart and a severe valve issue.
Most of his life has been spent in and out of Phoenix Children’s Hospital. Over his 14 years, Emery has had four open heart surgeries and several heart catheters.
His heart problem put him at the top of the list for an experimental procedure called the Melody Heart Valve procedure. This is where they go through the body with a heart catheter and replace a vein with a cow jugular vein. Emery was the first kid in Arizona to undergo this procedure.
“Going into it was extremely emotional, because we didn’t know if it would be successful at all,” said Emery’s mother, Lori Miller.
“I’m just rolling with the punches and going with the flow. I of course have my struggles, but I’m very competitive and want to keep up with my friends,” Emery explained.
Emery has been recovering well from the procedure, and hopes that there will not be any problems in the future.
Copyright 2013 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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