David Gelb
Our son – David Wayne Gelb – or Super Dave as he’s known by many ;) – was born December 27, 2010 at Froedtert/Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. Prior to birth, David was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect known as transposition of the great arteries (technically Pulmonary Stenosis - Ventricular Septal Defect – dextro Transposition of the Great Arteries (or PS-VSD-dTGA)), as well as a cleft lip and palate (technically Unilateral (Left) Cleft Lip and Palate).
We – Matt and Katie Gelb, and our 8-year old twin daughters Ella and Megan – feel so fortunate to have been blessed with such a wonderful gift from God in our little David! He was initially diagnosed – if you can believe it – when his heart was only 2 cm big about 20 weeks into Katie’s pregnancy. We had the opportunity to spend the next four months or so being able to learn more about David’s diagnosis and prepare for his upcoming birth and medical needs.
Nearly five years later, those who meet our super hero David for the first time (and let us tell you – he’s not one to shy away from introducing himself to nearly everyone he meets) may not initially realize all he’s been through. The scar on his chest from his two open heart surgeries (a Rastelli procedure to repair his transposition at five months and a recent replacement of the conduit from his Rastelli at four and a half months), a few smaller scars from his pair of septostimies, his cleft palate repair, and the scar under his right arm that runs from his arm pit to elbow – as well as the scars on the top and bottom of his forearm – are typically not visible to the public. David’s new friends may be so enamored by his shiny and smiley personality that they miss his barely-visible cleft lip scar and the glint that comes from his bionic smile (13 stainless steel caps due to dental surgery one week prior to his most recent heart surgery.)
We – Matt and Katie Gelb, and our 8-year old twin daughters Ella and Megan – feel so fortunate to have been blessed with such a wonderful gift from God in our little David! He was initially diagnosed – if you can believe it – when his heart was only 2 cm big about 20 weeks into Katie’s pregnancy. We had the opportunity to spend the next four months or so being able to learn more about David’s diagnosis and prepare for his upcoming birth and medical needs.
Nearly five years later, those who meet our super hero David for the first time (and let us tell you – he’s not one to shy away from introducing himself to nearly everyone he meets) may not initially realize all he’s been through. The scar on his chest from his two open heart surgeries (a Rastelli procedure to repair his transposition at five months and a recent replacement of the conduit from his Rastelli at four and a half months), a few smaller scars from his pair of septostimies, his cleft palate repair, and the scar under his right arm that runs from his arm pit to elbow – as well as the scars on the top and bottom of his forearm – are typically not visible to the public. David’s new friends may be so enamored by his shiny and smiley personality that they miss his barely-visible cleft lip scar and the glint that comes from his bionic smile (13 stainless steel caps due to dental surgery one week prior to his most recent heart surgery.)
