4-Year-Old Japanese Girl May Get Transplant Soon

Rarer B Positive Blood Type Means A Shorter Waiting List To Receive New Heart At Children's

By Tillie Fong

Denver Rocky Mountain News Staff Writer

Ami Miya Kubo may not have to wait long for a heart transplant.

"She has B positive blood," said Darcy Ripe, transplant coordinator at Children's Hospital. "Since her type is rarer, there are fewer people waiting."

As a B type, Ami is on top of Children's Hospital's list for a transplant from a B donor.

"Theoretically, because of her blood type, her wait should be an average of two months," said Ripe. "It could be much shorter or longer, depending on the availability of donors."

The 4-year-old from Japan flew into Denver with her parents Tuesday to wait for a new heart.

Ami suffers from cardiomyopathy, in which her heart muscle is so weakened by disease that her heartbeat is very slow. At the age of 10 months, she had to have a pacemaker put in.

Last month, she suffered two minor strokes.

Since it is illegal in Japan for anyone under the age of 15 to have a heart transplant, her home state, Kochi prefecture, raised $800,000 to pay for her operation overseas.

Six pediatric patients at Children's Hospital are waiting for heart transplants - two type A's, three type O's and Ami. The most common blood type is O, the rarest is AB.

Wednesday, Ami was formally listed on the United Network for Organ Sharing, the national registry for organ transplants, after undergoing an evaluation at Children's Hospital Tuesday night.

She is expected to be released in the next day or so to a Denver home.

"She's fairly stable, but she has very, very poor heart function," Ripe said.

For that reason, her status is listed as 1B, which is below the top priority rating of 1A for a heart transplant but above a 2 rating.

"Her condition can deteriorate very quickly," Ripe said. "If she gets stressed out or gets a cold, the heart is expected to do more work, and it can only do so much."

In 1998, Children's Hospital had 25 heart transplants, with nearly as many last year.

The survival rate among heart transplants at the hospital has been high - 133 out of the 171 since 1989 are still living.

Once Ami gets a new heart, she will probably stay three to five months in the U.S. before she returns to Japan.

Copyright © Denver Publishing Co.

This article posted July 3, 2000.