Child Beats All Odds

Her face sports a great big grin. She looks around the room through her bright pink sunglasses that she wears no matter where she is. She holds a tiny yellow car and tells everyone she sees about it. She is a 3 ½-year-old girl named Sephora Kalantari, and, if you had seen her a year ago, she would not have been able to do any of these things.

Sephora was born with two heart defects— pulmonary atresia and a hypo plastic right heart. One doctor told Sephora’s mom Debbie Kalantari, 22, that this is a unique case for two reasons: most cases of a hypo plastic heart deal with the left, not the right side; and, the doctor said, this was the only known case in the world with the two heart defects together. Sephora needed heart surgery but she was not healthy enough for the surgery until she was 2.

In March 2012, Sephora had open-heart surgery. The following day, she suffered a heart attack and a stroke. She had to be on a breathing machine for about five days after the surgery to sustain life, according to Debbie. A CT scan showed brain damage affecting the left side of her body caused by the stroke. After 51 days in the hospital, Sephora returned home at last with her mom and younger brother Zayden.

Once they were home, Sephora cried incessantly. The only times she would smile or laugh were whenever her brother spoke, which is why Debbie credits Zayden as a big part of Sephora’s recovery. Another big part of Sephora’s recovery is the staff at the Rehabilitation Institute of Kansas City (RIKC). Sephora’s transition to RIKC was difficult. She did not like being held and struggled to complete tasks without crying. Now, Sephora lights up when Speech-Language Pathologist Robin Miller-Gioia picks her up and hugs her. She has become a hard worker, attempting any task asked of her.

When Sephora started at RIKC, there was concern she was blind in both eyes. After a short amount of time, Sephora started identifying objects, and they discovered that she has vision in one eye. She learned to sit up on her own, and began to speak and reach for objects. After a course of intensive therapy, the team felt Sephora was making such fantastic gains that she was ready to transition to development preschool with follow-ups at RIKC to be sure she continues making gains.

Less than a month ago, Sephora had her second open-heart surgery. This time, the surgery went well, and Debbie said she is doing great! Sephora returned to RIKC to continue her recovery process. Debbie is proud of the person Sephora has become with the help of her RIKC team.

“I am so thankful for the people [at RIKC] who do what they do,” Debbie said. “Not everyone can do this work. The [staff at RIKC] is so patient and loving, and have overflowing optimism.” 

Sephora and her brother Zayden play on the slide,
which is something she couldn't do a year ago.