Maddie's Story | A Family's Journey Through a Diagnosis of Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome

#aplasticleftheartsyndrome #heartmonth #hearthealth https://www.mibluesperspectives.com/s... Mallory Applewhite knew something was wrong during her 20-week anatomy ultrasound when the technician kept leaving the room and coming back. This happened two or three times. Once the tech figured out the issue and instructed the young mother-to-be redress and meet her in her office, Applewhite’s heart began to sink. “That’s when things got serious,” Applewhite said. “They told us that the left side of her heart was significantly underdeveloped.” Applewhite’s baby was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a severe but treatable congenital heart defect. Hypoplastic left heart syndrome affects roughly 1 out of every 3,850 babies born yearly in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Heart disease – or any chronic health conditions for that matter – do not run in Applewhite’s family, nor do they run on her husband’s side. The CDC states that cause of heart defects like hypoplastic left heart syndrome among most babies are unknown. Some babies have heart defects because of changes in their genes or chromosomes. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, a nonprofit mutual insurance company, is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. BCBSM provides and administers health benefits to more than 4.4 million members residing in Michigan in addition to employees of Michigan-headquartered companies who reside outside the state. For more company information, visit Our website - http://bcbsm.com Our blog - http://MiBluesPerspectives.com Facebook -   / bcbsm   Twitter -   / bcbsm