他小时候是个心脏病患者，现在是照顾心脏病患者的住院医师

A month after Lynn Otaguro and Mark Lum brought their new baby, Matt, home from the hospital, they noticed he was fussy and exhausted after breastfeeding.

Matt wasn't gaining enough weight or growing like other babies his age. 第一次检查时，儿科医生认为马特可能有心脏杂音. The doctor scheduled an echocardiogram. 结果显示，马特出生时就有室间隔缺损，或者说他的小心脏上有一个洞.

医生告诉这对夫妇，他们的儿子最终需要做手术来堵住这个洞. 这对火奴鲁鲁夫妇怀疑这一切会在几年后马特长大、强壮的时候发生.

几个月后，马特仍然在母乳喂养中挣扎，体重不足. 医生在他的心脏插入了一根导管，仔细检查了一下，并决定手术不能再等了.

当时夏威夷的医疗保健系统不具备马特需要的手术设备. So when Matt was 8 1/2 months old, 这家人——包括马克的父母——飞到洛杉矶接受治疗. 在飞机上，林恩担心马特会感染病毒，手术会被推迟. She and her husband also knew the procedure was risky.

林恩说:“有一个有严重健康问题的孩子似乎是难以承受的. “为了马修，我们一步一步来，尽最大努力保持积极和冷静, our daughter and our family."

They stayed with Mark's sister, Susan, and her family. Mark's parents took care of their 2-year-old daughter, Katherine, while the couple prepared for the hospital. 苏珊的朋友们为马特向血库捐献了血液和血小板.

The couple left Matt in the hospital the night before surgery. 第二天，他们紧张地坐在候诊室里，等待外科医生缝合伤口. The surgery was a success. Doctors discharged Matt just three days later.

As a child, Matt saw a cardiologist every few years. Regular EKGs and ultrasound exams showed his heart was working OK.

There were some challenges. 尽管他在学校里跑过越野，还和童子军一起徒步旅行, physical activity tired him out.

“我们试图帮助马修看到他的健康状况是需要解决的问题, but not something that should overshadow his life," Lynn said.

Matt appreciated that.

"They never wanted me to see myself as weaker or less," Matt said. “他们想让我坚强，让我有一种任何人都能做到的感觉."

Matt's regular doctor visits combined with watching his father, a primary care physician, care for his own patients, led him to choose medicine as a career.

“我认为照顾像我这样的病人是非常有意义的，”马特说.

现年27岁的他是洛杉矶加州大学洛杉矶分校医疗中心麻醉科第二年的住院医师. 他喜欢在手术室里和病人一起工作，看到科学在当下发挥作用. He's considering pursuing cardiac or pediatric anesthesiology.

正如最近的一次恐慌提醒他的那样，他对自己的健康也一直念念不忘.

在回夏威夷的路上，马特和爸爸一起慢跑时，他的心率跳到了每分钟230次. Back in California, doctors diagnosed him with atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia, or episodes of an abnormally fast heartbeat.

At the University of California, 在旧金山——马特上医学院的地方——他接受了消融手术, 在此期间，引起异常节律的少量心脏组织被破坏.

In addition to his upstart career, Matt has volunteered with the American Heart Association, 向第一代和第二代中国高中生讲述他的故事. 他还做了一个关于血压的演讲，这样学生们就可以帮助他们年迈的父母或祖父母检查高血压.

他知道很多像他这样的人最终需要多次手术. He's thankful he's stable now and can help patients like himself.

“我承认我很幸运，”马特说，“现在我非常关注心脏健康."

Stories From the Heart 记录心脏病和中风幸存者、护理人员和倡导者的鼓舞人心的旅程.

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