34 years living with a heart outside the chest

Christopher Wall was born with all the complete parts, except one in the wrong position. His heart beating outside his chest. His story is not only a rare medicine, but a mystery.

In the summer of 1975, Teresa Wall was pleased to experience her first relatively peaceful pregnancy. Even in the delivery room, she was laboring for only 2 hours.

" All the hospital staff are laughing ," she recalls. Suddenly, the laughter went off when the doctor took out Christopher. The nurses fluttered there. Christopher is too unusual.

Born in an extremely rare condition called Ectopia cordis , Christopher's heart is exposed to his chest. The doctor said that for every 1 million babies born, only 5 to 8 babies suffer from this disease. Many babies died in the first 16 days, and some did not survive the first birthday. Doctors still cannot explain why some children experience this condition, while others do not.

Christopher Wall at a young age (left) and high school graduation. (Photo: ABC)

Teresa Wall is warned that her condition is serious, and she may not be able to survive even for a day. Little Christopher was taken right into the hospital's intensive care unit. Since there were no modern medical devices like today, such as ultrasound for early detection, the boy's condition was then considered " extremely surprising ".

Because the baby's heart is outside the chest cavity, there is no room for this tiny organ in the chest. Plus the concern that surgery will put pressure on the blood vessels of the heart, making the doctor unable to put her heart in her body.

However, your baby still challenges the doctor by surviving a few days, then a few weeks.

During the first 18 months of life, Christopher underwent 15 surgeries, all aimed at placing the heart in its position. But each time it passes, once again brings a greater risk to blood vessels, and the risk of dangerous blood vessels can cause the heart to stop beating. No other way, the doctor must cover the heart with the boy's skin and wait for the chest cavity to grow.

Christopher's chest is also weak and unstable. The boy breathes with the help of artificial respirators, because the lungs do not fulfill their functions. Even so, in the eyes of the mother, the boy is still a treasure.

Two days before his third birthday, he could leave the hospital and return home for the first time, often receiving special medical care.

In total, there were 21 surgeries to help liberate Christopher from artificial ventilators . In the 6-year-old boy, he underwent surgery to implant a part of his hip bone into his chest, to create a proper chest bone.

Because the heart lies just below the skin, the doctor has designed a piece of plastic to cover the chest to wear in clothing, to protect the boy. Christopher can live almost like a normal kid, ride a bike and play sports like karate or basketball.

As a result of too many surgeries, Christopher is now incapable of hearing, and tends to become disabled. In 1995, he graduated from high school. Because of hearing loss, his voice is sometimes distorted and hard to hear.

Now 34, Christopher still plays sports with his family, greeting everyone and trying to live as normal as everyone.

He had just lost his job of being acquainted for the past 12 years at a pipeline construction company due to production cuts, but he said he wanted to return to volunteer for the hospital that helped him survive.