A BRAVE youngster has, hopefully, had the last of her major heart surgery.
Ellie Richardson, seven, of west Hull, has undergone three surgical procedures in the last few weeks – including a ten-and-a-half-hour operation.
Ellie has suffered from heart complications since birth and has undergone six heart operations and suffered a stroke.
She has been travelling to and from Leeds General Infirmary, which was recently saved from closure, at least for the foreseeable future, after a campaign.
Mum Melanie, 35, said: "It is a relief it is all over and this is, hopefully, the last of her major surgery.
"She will have to have her pacemaker changed but, apparently, that is the easiest of the stuff they have done.
"The good news is she isn't out of breath all the time anymore – she still gets tired but has a lot more energy than before.
"She is lovely and pink now for the first time – she used to have bluey-purple lips and colouring before.
"She has coped so well with it all, she is absolutely brilliant."
In her latest stays in hospital, Ellie had a ten-and-a-half hour operation called a fontan procedure – a complicated surgery performed on children with complex congenital heart defects.
A day later, she had an external pacemaker fitted, followed by an internal one a few days after that.
But when she returned home, Ellie had problems walking and went back to Leeds to have fluid drained from her hip.
She is now back with her family – mum Melanie, dad Kev, 35, and siblings Sophie, 16, Jessica, 14, and Joshua, 11.
Melanie said: "We're home-schooling her at the moment, but we hope she will be returning to school in September.
"But today we're going to Leeds for a check-up and she wants to ask the doctor if she can go back now.
"She likes to push her luck – she wants to be back at school with her friends."
