GIVE NOFY A NEW FACE AND LOOK AFTER HIS HEART

This facial deformity is not just a tragedy of appearance for the little girl, it’s her growth that’s at stake. Nofy has difficulty eating what her mother prepares for her, as much of what she should swallow comes out through her nose. The little girl suffocates and cannot eat enough to grow properly.

A destitute family

Although this condition is considered a curse in Madagascar, Nofy’s parents have no such beliefs. They did everything they could to find help and save their child. But their mother is a seamstress and their father a grocer in a small village on the outskirts of Antananarivo, the island’s capital. Their modest incomes do not allow them to cover the cost of hospitalization.

Double punishment for the little girl

It was during medical examinations at the Centre Hospitalier de Soavinandriana, Antananarivo, that specialists discovered that Nofy’s stunted growth was not only linked to the cleft lip, but also to his diseased heart. In addition to the cleft lip, the little girl suffers from a serious heart defect, a “persistent ductus arteriosus”.

The ductus arteriosus is a small vessel located between the pulmonary artery and the aorta. It is essential for the fetus to breathe through the mother. However, at the baby’s first cry, this duct closes, allowing the blood to take the normal circulation route. In Nofy’s case, the ductus arteriosus remained open, allowing the blood to flow in the wrong direction. The persistence of the ductus arteriosus is the most frequent congenital cardiac anomaly. In the past, it led to fatal complications: the lungs flooded with blood and pulmonary pressure exploded. Today, we can operate!

Give Nofy a new face and heal her heart

Let’s give the Malagasy surgeons a chance to get Nofy back on his feet, so that his face can be repaired. Thanks to you, she’ll be just like any other child. The medical teams are in place, the operating theatre is ready… But the incompressible costs of heart surgery amount to 3,000 euros. The price of life. Unfortunately, this sum is far too high for the little girl’s parents, who are struggling to earn enough to feed their family. That’s why we’re appealing to you!

For them, your generosity means life. Thank you for your generosity!