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SOCIAL PROJECT IN BOLIVIA: SUPPORT FOR CHILDREN WITH HEART DISEASE

Social commitment is very important to us. On this page we would therefore like to present various projects which are close to our hearts and which we support.

The first project in this series is the Cardio Centre in La Paz, Bolivia. Our colleague Miriam "Mila" Milz visited the Cardio Centre and met in person the affected families and children. Mila also had the opportunity to interview Dr. Alexandra Heath-Freudenthal, the director of the Cardio Centre.

WHAT IS THE 'HEART PROJECT' ABOUT?

Due to the altitude, around 3000 children in Bolivia are born with a heart defect every year. Additionally, many children and adults in the region suffer from heart defects caused by diseases due to poverty.

As the costs for diagnosis, treatment and aftercare are not covered by any state health insurance, many poorer families and children remain on their own and unprotected. If surgery or treatment is required, they cannot afford the often very expensive procedures.

But there is also another problem: superstition and mistrust of Western medicine also lead to children not being examined in the first place or families rejecting medical treatment.

This is exactly where the Cardio Centre comes into play. With the donations collected, the life-saving treatment of children can be carried out in the Cardio Centre.

The Cardio Centre in La Paz, Bolivia is a modernly equipped centre for diagnosis, parent counselling, aftercare and minimally invasive heart catheterisation. Dr. Alexandra Heath-Freudenthal's team not only treats the children, but also carries out important educational work in the region to ensure that the affected children can be helped in the best possible way.

SMALL PATIENTS OF THE HEART CENTRE: MILENA AND DANTE

In the 360° Geo Report "Bolivia - The fight for little hearts" we saw the story of little Milena for the first time. All the more we were happy that our colleague Mila had the opportunity to meet Milena and her mother personally.


Milena is one of the small patients of the Cardio Centre who was born with a heart defect. At first nothing was noticed at birth, but already in the first weeks and months of life there were noticeable abnormalities. Compared to her twin sister Vilma, the smaller Milena was often ill. During a hospital visit the heart defect was discovered, but the first attempt of a planned operation failed due to an accident (Milena fell from bed shortly before the operation in hospital). Only with the help of Dr. Alexandra Heath-Freudenthal could the life-saving operation be carried out successfully. Today Milena is a healthy and happy girl who is developing normally.

Another little patient, whom our colleague Mila was able to meet personally, is little Dante. His mother was 17 years old when she became pregnant and left on her own after Dante's father moved abroad for a job. At first no abnormalities were noticed, but soon after the birth the little boy had breathing problems. Dante had a heart defect and had to undergo surgery as soon as possible. The rescue was also carried out this time by the Cardio Centre and the team of Dr. Heath-Freudenthal: Dante was successfully operated on the open heart. However, due to a scar on the heart, he needs one or even more further operations until he no longer grows. The new heart surgery, worth 5000 dollars, is currently still being financed.

AAVALABS SUPPORTS HEART ASSOCIATION WITH DONATIONS

The work of the Heart Centre in La Paz impressed us very much. After our personal visit it was clear that we would like to support the association and the valuable work of Dr. Alexandra Heath-Freudenthal and her team.

In the future, a certain portion of the revenue we generate with our online shop will be donated to Herzverein e.V. The money raised will be used to provide life-saving treatment and surgery for children suffering from heart disease such as Milena and Dante.

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More information about the background of the project can be found here:

Ted Talk by Franz Freudenthal, cardiologist and inventor of crocheted heart implants:
Ted Talk

Heart Association Website:
Heart Association