The Palestinian Children's Heart Center team at Al-Makassed Hospital succeeded in performing a successful catheterization procedure to close a hole in the heart located between the ventricles, for a 6-month-old infant. The procedure was performed without the need for surgical intervention, by closing the hole using a device closure by creating an arteriovenous ring.

Regarding the success of the hole closure procedure in a qualitative way that spared the child from undergoing an immediate surgery and another after she reached the age of one year, Dr. Muhammad Abu Taqa, a pediatric cardiologist at Al-Makassed Hospital, says that the location of the hole was one of the areas that are difficult to reach surgically.

Dr. Abu Taqa adds: “The child's condition was diagnosed with a large hole measuring 5 mm, as this size is large for the child's age and weight, which does not exceed 4.5 kg. This hole pumps excess blood to the lungs, and thus could have led to enlargement of the heart muscle and failure of the muscle to function.”

According to Dr. Abu Taqa: Initially, the girl was given medication to increase her weight, but this procedure was not effective due to the excessive blood flow from the heart due to the hole. The doctor says that after discussing with the family and the medical team at Al-Makassed Hospital, we decided to perform the operation using a catheter, which lasted for 3 continuous hours. We succeeded in creating a circuit between the right femoral artery and the left femoral vein by inserting a wire between the chambers through the hole. The hole was completely closed using a closed therapeutic umbrella. Dr. Abu Taqa confirms that the girl recovered immediately and left the hospital in good health, indicating that the success of this operation was achieved through great cooperation between the units of the Palestinian Center for Pediatric Cardiac Surgery.

As for the girl's father, he says that his daughter was suffering from multiple medical problems and was exposed to recurrent lung infections. We were transferred to Al-Makassed Hospital after the case was diagnosed by Dr. Muhammad Abu Taqa, who discovered her condition. The operation was performed successfully, thanks be to God Almighty and the efforts of the doctors.