A young woman is to undergo an extremely delicate 10-hour operation to save her life after developing a rare disease during a dream holiday abroad.
Paris Hedger, a 20-year-old Adelaide woman, flew to the United States in December to fulfill her goal of spending Christmas in New York City, but just days after landing she fell ill with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH).
In just over six months, he has developed hundreds of blood clots in his lungs, which in turn has affected his heart. This week he has travelled to Melbourne, where doctors will fit him with a heart-lung bypass machine for surgery.
Medical experts believe the young woman’s condition occurred after a horse kicked her in the leg during a trip to Vanuatu in November.
Paris claimed the horse riding company failed to give her first aid despite having a football-sized lump on her leg and doctors in Adelaide failed to warn her about blood clots, despite her mentioning she was flying to the US.
The long-haul flight she took the following month triggered her illness, which has since seen her in and out of hospitals in the United States and Australia.
She will undergo extraordinary and complex surgery in which all the blood will be drained from her body in a last-ditch attempt to locate exactly where the clots in her lungs are and remove them, before being placed in a coma to recover.
His mother, Karen Hedger, explained in to GoFundMe Page for your daughter: ‘This can only be achieved by cooling your body to 20°C – almost half the normal body temperature – to avoid damage to vital organs, including the brain.’
Paris Hedger, a 20-year-old Adelaide woman, developed a rare condition after a long-haul flight to New York City that caused hundreds of blood clots to form in her lungs.
Medical experts believe her condition occurred after a horse kicked her in the leg a month before her flight.
After saving for a decade for her trip to the United States, the travel blogger arrived with a friend in New York City on December 17.
After seeing the sights and celebrating the new year in Times Square, they traveled to Las Vegas and Los Angeles, and Paris’ mom said she was lucky to have enjoyed some of her vacation before she fell ill.
On January 12, while in Beverley Hills, Paris had trouble breathing and was rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where scans revealed that 50 percent of her lungs were filled with blood clots.
Doctors told her mother the condition was life-threatening and she spent her 20th birthday in intensive care before being allowed to fly home to Australia on January 20 on a business class flight with a medical escort.
The flight would have cost $34,000 if Paris did not have travel insurance.
Paris has been in and out of the hospital in both the United States and Australia since January.
She had to get a business-class flight with a medical escort from the United States to Australia, which would have cost her $34,000 if she had not had travel insurance.
Since her return, Paris has had recurring episodes of very low blood pressure and breathing difficulties, which led to her fainting while walking her dog.
The operation he will have to undergo has become more difficult due to a damaged pulmonary artery.
“The pressure on my heart is quite a bit higher than most people’s. They’re not quite sure if I’ll make a quick and full recovery,” Paris said. Yahoo News.
“I could barely walk down the street without feeling like I was going to pass out and I had a really bad cough… (the surgery) needs to be done,” she said.
Her mother, Karen Hedger, had to stop working as a hairdresser to accompany her daughter on trips to the hospital.
Paris said she remembers her trip fondly and would still encourage others to travel.
After the operation, Paris will spend a week in a coma in the ICU.
If any complications arise, she could be forced to remain in a coma for months awaiting a lung transplant.
“I just want to get the surgery done and hopefully get over this, because surgery is the only option for me to live a normal life again,” she said.
She added that she is grateful for what she has been able to do in her 20 years and although she got sick while traveling, she fondly remembers her travels while in the hospital and encourages others to “get out there and live life.”
Ms Hedger, a hairdresser, had to stop working and move to Melbourne to be with Paris during the operation and recovery.