8-month-old boy miraculously revived thanks to ECMO artificial heart

(Dan Tri) - With nearly 20 years of experience in pediatric resuscitation, for Dr. Chu Thanh Son - Head of Pediatrics - Neonatology Department, Vinmec Smart City Hospital (Hanoi), each breath saved is to preserve hope for the whole family.

The story of an 8-month-old boy miraculously resurrected thanks to an ECMO artificial heart is one of them.

Decisions made in seconds

An 8-month-old baby boy was transferred to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit - Vinmec Smart City Hospital in a state of cyanosis, respiratory failure, and severe circulatory failure. Despite being intubated and receiving vasopressors, his blood pressure continued to drop rapidly.

Bedside ultrasound revealed severe pulmonary hypertension. Worryingly, there was no complex congenital heart defect to explain this condition.

As each minute passed, each heartbeat drew closer to the boundary between life and death, Dr. Chu Thanh Son decided to choose the ECMO method - extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. This is the last resort, when the child's heart and lungs are no longer able to function on their own.

The surgery that followed was successful beyond expectations. Two weeks later, the patient was taken off ECMO and was able to breathe on his own.

Dr. Chu Thanh Son - The man behind the surgery to revive an 8-month-old boy (Photo: Vinmec).

Her previous condition was determined to be pulmonary vein stenosis - a rare defect and it was Dr. Son's decision to activate ECMO for a few short minutes that saved her life .

“If it had been a few minutes later, the baby’s heart and lungs could have stopped working. In the emergency room, sometimes we have to make decisions within a few dozen seconds,” Dr. Son shared.

The daily work of Dr. Chu Thanh Son and his colleagues at the Department of Pediatrics and Neonatology is a series of non-stop observations, assessments and actions. Each shift is likened to a journey of "reading" the language of the child's body.

“Children are not miniature adults. We have to observe every little detail - their eyes, the way they breathe, their cries, their reactions to touch - and then combine it with the medical history given by their parents to paint a complete picture of their condition. It is a process that requires sensitivity, perseverance and love,” Dr. Son shared.

Dr. Chu Thanh Son examines a child patient (Photo: Vinmec).

According to Dr. Son, pediatric emergency care is a race with every breath. Children can become seriously ill in just a few minutes, because their physiological reserves are lower than adults, and their respiratory and circulatory reactions occur very quickly. Therefore, in every emergency, doctors must both diagnose and act. Just a small mistake or delay can cause life to slip away. On the contrary, when intervened early and in the right direction, children will recover miraculously quickly.

“That is the biggest reward for pediatric resuscitation,” said Dr. Son.

Pioneering in bringing modern resuscitation techniques to Vietnamese pediatrics

Graduated from Hanoi Medical University and defended his PhD at Kanazawa University (Japan), Dr. Chu Thanh Son soon became known as one of the leading experts in applying advanced resuscitation techniques for young children.

In 2011, when the hand, foot and mouth disease broke out, many children suffered from respiratory failure and cardiogenic shock and died. He and his colleagues pioneered the trial of continuous blood filtration - which was only applied to adults - for critically ill children. The results far exceeded expectations, with many children recovering after 48-72 hours.

“We felt like we were witnessing a miracle of science ,” he said.

At Vinmec Smart City, Dr. Son and his team continue to apply ECMO, POCUS (bedside ultrasound), and continuous blood filtration for young children - helping to intervene quickly and minimize risks. According to him, what makes the difference is not just the machines, but the spirit of not giving up, the harmonious coordination between doctors, nurses, and technicians.

After a journey of treating thousands of serious illnesses, Dr. Chu Thanh Son realized that many regrets came from parents' delays.

“High fever, cough, rapid breathing, refusal to breastfeed – these are dangerous signs, but many parents still wait another night, or give their children folk remedies, until their children turn purple before taking them to the hospital. If only a few hours earlier, the outcome could have been different,” Dr. Son shared.

After nearly 20 years in the medical field, for Dr. Chu Thanh Son, the happiest thing does not come from the title he receives, but from everyday moments: a baby who was once gasping for breath now plays; a parent returning to hug the doctor in tears of happiness; or the first cry of a baby after long days of silence in the intensive care unit.

“That cry is a signal that all efforts and interventions have paid off. It is also a reminder that our work, though silent, is truly saving the lives of the most fragile,” Dr. Son shared.

Amidst the urgent sounds in the emergency room, Dr. Chu Thanh Son and his colleagues at Vinmec Smart City still race against time every day to save the lives of children on the brink of life and death.

He hopes that the Vietnamese medical sector will have more international-standard pediatric and neonatal resuscitation centers, the gap between treatment levels will be narrowed, and the quality of human resources will be improved. From there, every child born will have the opportunity to receive comprehensive care and grow up healthy.

To get consultation and examination with Dr. Chu Thanh Son, please contact to make an appointment through the Vinmec website here or download the MyVinmec application.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/suc-khoe/be-trai-8-thang-tuoi-hoi-sinh-than-ky-nho-trai-tim-nhan-tao-ecmo-20251027115359414.htm