Good News from Iraq: 31 Jul 2007

From MNF-I, ‘Operation Iraqi Heart,’ U.S. Special Operations Forces, Army Civil Affairs aid Al Anbar child.

BAGHDAD – Even though she’s surrounded by war, Dalal is not much different than
other children her age. She likes jumping rope and Cinderella and enjoys reading and drawing. Her favorite classes are religion and language and she recently completed second grade -- earning perfect marks in all her studies. But, unlike many of her peers, the 8-year-old Iraqi has also fought a life-threatening battle from within since birth.

Due to the efforts of a U.S. Special Forces medic and U.S. Army Civil Affairs
noncommissioned officer, all of that changed recently and Dalal was granted a new
lease on life.

July 23, Dalal received an operation in Amman, Jordan, to correct a heart defect
known as Tetralogy of Fallot. The congenital disease causes a decreased flow of bloodto the lungs, as well as mixing of blood from separate chambers of the heart. Left unattended, Dalal’s prognosis could have been death around the time she hit puberty.

“We had to close a hole in one area of her heart and patch and enlarge another
area,” said Pediatric Cardiologist Dr. Khaled Salaymeh shortly after the operation. “She was fully awake shortly after the surgery and doing excellent.”

Dalal’s journey to the operating room began in Western Iraq several months ago.

“The previous (Special Forces) team here discovered her,” said Army Staff Sgt.
Joe Murtaugh, a U.S. Special Forces medical sergeant assigned to the Al Anbar
Province.

“Her father had an electrocardiogram from when she was 3 years old diagnosing
her with the condition. Since so much time had passed, they had him take her to where she could get another test and the diagnosis came back the same.”

While reviewing Dalal’s medical records, Murtaugh found an e-mail address for
the International Organization of Migration in Jordan and contacted them for assistance.

“They directed us to several contacts but the most important was Marikay (Army
Staff Sgt. Marikay Satryano). She took care of all the logistical details in Jordan and
even arranged for three organizations to cover the $8,000 cost of Dalal’s Surgery.” ...

Read the rest of the story here.