Calvert dancer gets a second chance after surgery

Now a senior at Calvert High School, 18-year-old Skyy Walker had been active on the dance squad and the track and basketball teams since she was in junior high.

After graduation from high school in May, she planned on joining the Army.

When school started in September, Walker underwent the required pre-participation physical exam so she could play sports again. As in the past, she expected the physical to reflect how healthy she was.

But this school year was different: A heart murmur had been detected during the physical.

After a series of tests at the College Station Medical Center, it was discovered that Skyy had an Atrial Septal Defect -- a genetic condition in which a hole exists between the upper two chambers in the heart.

The hole causes an abnormal increase of blood flow to the right side of the heart, damaging it. Over time, the right side will enlarge, eventually leading to heart failure.

When she heard about the defect, Walker was afraid that she would no longer be able to participate in the activities she loved.

"I was sad because I couldn't dance anymore," she said.

Sandra Gibson, Skyy's guardian, has been with Walker every step of the way.

"There were times I thought she was giving up because she couldn't do the things she was used to," Gibson said.

Because Calvert is a small town, Gibson said everyone knows each other and provided the family with a system of support.

"There was no negative attention. They helped keep her going and keep her motivated," Gibson said.

Two weeks after her initial physical, Gibson was contacted by Dr. Rocky Bilhartz, an interventional cardiologist at The Med, who explained Walker's condition and the procedure that could close the hole in her heart.

Before undergoing the procedure, Walker was scared and had asked herself, "Am I going to be able to do this or not?"

Rather than opening the chest, Bilhartz performed this region's first non-surgical procedure to close the hole in Walker's heart with a flexible wire mesh device called an Amplatzer Septal Occluder.

During the procedure, Bilhartz entered the artery in the groin with a small flexible tube, which he extended into her heart. After measuring the hole, Bilhartz pushed the occluder through the tube, causing it to close the hole. The device is designed so that it will grow into the skin, typically within a period of six months.

"Had they not fixed it, she wouldn't necessarily have had problems next year, but would have later on in life between age 30 and 50," Bilhartz said.

Once in place, the device will not need to be replaced. Within a few days, Walker was able to resume her regular physical activities.

Though she was monitored at the hospital overnight after the procedure, which was performed on a Friday, she was able to return to school the next Monday.

At a post-procedure check-up in January, Walker said that going through the procedure made her feel like she had "made history."