Adult and Pediatric Heart Teams At Joe DiMaggio Childrens Hospital Develop Groundbreaking Procedure

Memorial Cardiac and Vascular Institute and Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital physicians achieved an amazing accomplishment this year.

They provided lifesaving care to 14-month-old Amelia with an innovative procedure that had never been performed on a child so young.

The toddler was rushed to Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital with an alarming problem: Her heart was beating at an accelerated 326 beats a minute. Amelia’s condition was life-threatening: Her particular arrhythmia – known as ventricular tachycardia – was not responding to medication. “Her chances of survival were very slim,” Amelia’s mother, Samantha, says. “Doctors at two other major children’s hospitals were consulted, and both provided no hope.”