A premature baby has had a "miracle" recovery after surviving an emergency operation at just one day old.
Amelie Dewbery was born by emergency caesarean at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.
After a routine 20-week scan revealed complications with her heart, her parents, Sarah and Matthew, had been referred to Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Amelie deteriorated after her birth on March 3 and her parents were warned she may not have long to live unless she had a "very risky surgery".
The newborn was deemed too sick to be taken to theatre but in a desperate attempt to revive her, consultant neonatal surgeon Mr Ashok Daya Ram and his supporting teams decided to open her chest in the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
“Opening the chest of a one-day-old premature baby who is on an oscillator, lots of drugs and too sick to move to theatre and deteriorating rapidly is not a procedure that is usually undertaken and successful, but she has made a remarkable recovery,” he said.
Amelie underwent another operation a few days later - this time in a theatre - and has since been discharged.
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“We were told that the operation was very, very, risky and there was a low chance of survival, but we wanted to try, knowing that whatever happened we’d given our baby the best chance of living a normal life,” Matthew said.
"The operation went well - we feel like someone was looking down on us that day.
“It has been an incredibly emotional few weeks but Mr Ram and the whole team have all played a part in helping us get through this.
"We cannot thank them enough. It’s a miracle really."
The family intends to fundraise as a thank you to support the unit and to help others going through difficult times in the future.
Mr Ram added: “The team expects a full recovery and for Amelie to have a normal life.
“I am extremely grateful to the parents for putting all their faith and trust in me to undertake the procedure.
"I’m also very grateful to the surgical, anaesthetic and neonatal teams who supported my decision and helped in the operation."
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