An Unexpected Hole in the Heart: Daffa’s Journey

Daffa is a schoolboy from Aceh who smiles easily these days. Behind his cheerfulness lies a journey with some twists: a leak in his heart that was found quite unexpectedly. His father looks back on the family's journey, from the surprising news to the procedure at Heartology.

An Unexpected Finding

Daffa was once in a motorcycle accident, and part of his skull bone had to be removed. In 2023, he was scheduled for surgery to repair the skull. Before an operation, patients are usually checked to make sure they are ready for anaesthesia. It was during these checks that doctors noticed his heartbeat was not quite normal, even though the family had not suspected any heart problem.

Further examination showed a leak in the wall dividing Daffa's heart. His father described it simply as a leaking heart. The condition is known as an atrial septal defect (ASD), a hole in the wall that separates the left and right upper chambers of the heart. A hole like this lets some blood flow to a side of the heart where it should not go.

The doctor explained to the family that, because of the leak, clean and dirty blood were mixing. As his father understood it, this was also affecting Daffa's growth. The doctor advised closing the hole as soon as possible.

Finding the Way to Heartology

The news left the family feeling hopeless for a while. A doctor then recommended that they bring Daffa to Heartology, which matched the parents' wish to have his heart repaired soon. At Heartology, the family met the pediatric cardiologist who went on to treat Daffa. "Thank God, the doctor showed us a way to repair Daffa's heart," his father recalled.

Undergoing ASD Closure

Daffa then underwent the defect closure, which the family called patching the heart. The aim of the procedure is to close the hole in the heart wall so that blood flows along its proper path again. While it was under way, his parents waited anxiously, their hearts pounding. At around 8.30 in the evening, the doctor called them. "Thank God, it went well, he said," his father remembered.

When the video was recorded, Daffa was back at school and looked cheerful. The family expressed their gratitude and thanks to the doctors and team who cared for him. That relief shows in the smiles of Daffa and his father throughout the video.

Daffa's father also had a message for other parents facing something similar. "Don't be afraid, don't be anxious, don't worry," he said. In his view, if parents notice signs of a heart problem in their child, they should consult a cardiologist straight away so that treatment can be planned together.