The sudden onset of an alarming health condition sent a nine-year-old boy in Singapore to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) last month, leaving his family reeling from the ordeal.
While the boy is on the road to recovery, his family has racked up hefty medical bills, even after utilising insurance and Medisave.
Source: Give.asia
Matt Aeron, a fourth-grade student, is “a beacon of joy” to all who know him, said his godmother Tina Villanueva on his Give.asia crowdfunding page.
She described him as a “gentle spirit” with “deep thoughtfulness” and “boundless love” who also has “enthusiasm and positivity” that’s inspiring.
Source: Give.asia
However, he was stricken by a “sudden and alarming” disease early this year.
On 4 Jan, Matt started feeling unusually tired and sleepy, his mother Desiree, a 42-year-old IT professional, told Shin Min Daily News.
He fell asleep several times in one day, then complained of chest pains that night.
His family sent him to KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital, where he was diagnosed with myocarditis, which is the inflammation of the heart muscle.
Early on 5 Jan, Matt’s heart function dropped sharply while undergoing tests.
Source: Give.asia
This resulted in a cardiopulmonary collapse or heart failure, and he even suffered cardiac arrest while undergoing intubation.
While doctors managed to save Matt, he was put on veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) to sustain his life.
This is a temporary life support system for patients with heart failure.
He was admitted to the ICU, where he was dealt another blow — he was found to have Covid-19.
Thus, he had to be transferred to an isolation ward within the ICU.
As he was still on life support, he was “nearly in a coma” for a few days, Desirée said.
Fortunately, Matt’s heart showed signs of recovery after nine days in the ICU.
On 16 Jan, doctors took him off life support and dialysis.
The day was bittersweet, though, as they also found out that he had suffered a mild stroke that affected movement in his left side.
Nevertheless, he was finally moved out of the ICU on 24 Jan and discharged on Feb 8.
According to The Straits Times (ST), Matt was still not out of the woods — he was readmitted to the hospital twice since that initial stay.
The article also quoted his mother saying that medical reports indicated Matt suffered myocarditis induced by Covid-19. Matt’s mother said he is unvaccinated against Covid-19.
Though Matt’s family is optimistic about his recovery, they are now faced with daunting medical bills.
The initial cost of his treatment was S$350,000 but was whittled down by insurance and Medisave.
However, the family still needs S$190,000 to make up the shortfall.
A crowdfunding appeal under Give.asia has been launched to raise funds to pay the bills. About S$37,000 has been raised at the time of writing.
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Featured image adapted from Give.asia.
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