Baby girl’s life saved by surgery

Baby Kendreya Pillay seemed like any newborn – until her tiny chest began rising and falling rapidly and she quickly grew tired.

Born in October 2024 to Paroosha Naidoo and Kevin Pillay in Chatsworth, Durban, Kendreya’s dad remembers those early days vividly: “Her stomach would sink with every breath, like her little body was working overtime just to breathe.”

As the weeks passed, Kendreya’s breathing worsened.

Vivid early days of Kendreya’s breathing problems

Kevin juggled night shifts, driving Paroosha and Kendreya between hospital appointments and tests.

Then came the devastating diagnosis – a large hole in the heart was affecting Baby Kendreya’s blood flow.

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Surgery was initially scheduled for March, when Kendreya would be six months old, but this was not to be

The team of doctors at Inkosi Albert Luthuli Hospital did everything they could to help, but resources at the government hospital could not cope with the desperate need for such specialised procedures.

“It broke our hearts as the doctors had warned us that after eight or nine months, surgery becomes much riskier,” Kevin said.

Life’s purpose reaching children with life-threatening heart defects

Cardiothoracic surgeon and founder of the Young Hearts Africa Foundation, Dr Wilhelm Lichtenberg, has made it his life’s purpose to reach children with life-threatening heart defects like Kendreya’s.

Since its inception in 2023, the foundation has helped 30 children.

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Paroosha searched tirelessly for help for their daughter until she found Lichtenberg. “At first, it felt too good to be true and we were worried it might be a scam. But Dr Lichtenberg responded, asking only for medical records, never money. It was a light in a dark time.”

Meanwhile, Kendreya’s condition was worsening – she lost appetite and started passing blood, prompting urgent scans.

“Baby Kendreya had been diagnosed with atrioventricular septal defect [AVSD], which is a congenital heart defect. This means that she had a large hole in the heart’s centre that affected the walls between the upper chambers and lower chambers of her heart.

Baby diagnosed with atrioventricular septal defect

“Because the valves that control blood flow between these chambers are malformed or shared, it allows oxygen-rich and oxygen-poor blood to mix inside the heart,” LichtenEnbergaid.

“Babies with AVSD often experience rapid breathing, difficulty feeding, excessive sweating and poor weight gain. If left untreated, the extra blood flow can damage the lungs, leading to heart failure.”

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He added: “The risks increase after six months because the lungs can suffer irreversible damage from the extra blood flow. Early repair gives babies the best chance to grow and thrive.”

With no options open to them in KwaZulu-Natal and private care out of reach, Kendreya’s future looked bleak – until the Young Hearts Africa Foundation stepped in.

Lichtenberg made it his mission to secure the surgery she needed in Cape Town.

Mission to secure baby’s surgery in Cape Town

Mande Toubkin, Netcare’s general manager of trauma, transplant and corporate social investment said: “When the Young Hearts Africa Foundation reached out about baby Kendreya’s urgent case, the Netcare Foundation and Netcare Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital immediately prioritised her AVSD repair.”

Lichtenberg says having the operation before Kendreya’s condition worsened made all the difference.

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“Thanks to the support of the Netcare Foundation, the selfless dedication and cooperation of heart surgeon Dr Susan Vosloo, anaesthetist Dr Marie Bosman, Pathcare Pathologists, Morton & Partners Radiologists, Medtronic, and Cossni Medical, baby Kendreya finally has a real chance at a healthier future. This surgery has changed the course of her life and given her the opportunity to thrive,” he said.

When Young Hearts Africa reached out, the charity Wings and Wishes graciously joined the effort by providing airline tickets for Kendreya and her parents.

Their work is dedicated to enabling disadvantaged children to reach the medical facilities for treatment.

Hope blossomed

Now home in Durban, Paroosha and Kevin recall their darkest days of fear and uncertainty – and the hope that blossomed when they connected with Lichtenberg and the team at Netcare Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital.

Every year, 500 000 children across Africa are born with heart defects. In SA alone, where 85% of the population relies on public health care without medical insurance, heart disease is the third leading cause of death among children.

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