Katelyn Petts

Katelyn was born April 30th, 2014. Immediately upon birth, Katelyn struggled to breathe. She spent the first week of her life on every ventilator that has been made. Despite the use of nitric oxide and many various types of ventilation, Katelyn could not get her oxygen level stabilized. She suffered from PPHN, a condition that occurs when a baby does not take a good deep first breath at birth. But, the original cause of why her lungs were not breathing right was unknown.

After a week, Katelyn was sent to Riley Hospital. 

Katelyn’s Riley doctor decided to try a cystic fibrosis drug in Katelyn’s ventilator, even though she did not have cystic fibrosis. Within a couple of days of trying this treatment, Katelyn began to stabilize and we decided not to go ahead with the lung biopsy. After one month at Riley hospital, Katelyn was sent home with a clean bill of health. She has had no complications since leaving Riley hospital and today is a developmentally normal 9-month-old. 

There is no real explanation for what happened to Katelyn or how it is that she miraculously recovered. The only real certainty is that Riley hospital changed our lives forever. 

We could go on and on about Riley Hospital but the key takeaway is that Riley Hospital gives love. They change lives every day. Even though the outcome is not always the same as Katelyn’s, everyone who enters the doors at Riley leaves changed forever and knows that good is happening there. Keep dancing, your dancing is changing and saving lives! You are making a difference!