Centro Pediátrico de Mayo Clinic

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   (VIDEO) 13-year-old Ava is home with a new heart, kidney following a 22-month hospital stay 

   After more than 22 months at Mayo Clinic Children's, 13-year-old Ava Weitl went home to Iowa. She and her family were met with tears and cheers as dozens of members from her care team, who are now considered friends of the family, said goodbye and wished her well.  This was a day Ava had been looking forward to after a long journey with heart failure, two lifesaving extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) therapies, a heart transplant, kidney…

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   Honoring a young girl's love of nature on her final day

   On a Saturday evening in September of 2024, Mae Helgeson arrived at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, her small body reeling from the trauma of a life-threatening accident. Although she was intubated and sedated, it didn't take long for the care team to learn what made this little girl special.  "I distinctly remember meeting her parents — you just immediately felt warmth and love," says Dr. Brenda Schiltz, a physician in Rochester's pediatric intensive care unit…

3. 

   New elbow surgery technique developed at Mayo Clinic helps wrestler get back on the mat

   Photo courtesy of David Peterson of Minnesota/USA Wrestling Tommy John surgery is not just for baseball pitchers. Ask Kylie Donat of Bemidji, Minnesota. Kylie is an 18-year-old high school swimmer, track and field athlete, and wrestler. She has been wrestling since 2021, the first year that girls' wrestling was a sanctioned high school sport in Minnesota. By 2023, Kylie was favored to win her weight class at the state championship. Photo courtesy of David Peterson…

4. 

   Unforeseen danger of a child's fall: Livia's remarkable recovery

   Livia Mayberry and her sister were playing basketball with their dad at a neighbor's house in August 2022 when then-4-year-old Livia took a hard fall and hit her head on the pavement. Her family wasn't too concerned because she seemed OK. She was talking, didn't lose consciousness and didn't have a bump. However, a short time later, she threw up. Quick medical attention Her parents decided to get her checked at the Emergency Department at Mayo…