New York Magazine
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The family and friends of this 6-month-old baby take a moment to pray for a successful heart transplant. Without this procedure, the baby had months to live.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
In the ICU, before the baby is sent down to surgery.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The mother and 6-month-old baby before the surgery.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
Dr. Weinstein details to the infant’s mother and father how the surgery will unfold.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The infant as he’s being transported from the ICU to the operating room.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
As the baby is anesthetized, Dr. Weinstein prepares for surgery.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
With the baby asleep, Dr. Weintein feels his breastbone, deciding where the incision will be.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
Dr. Weinstein debriefing the team about the plan for the procedure.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The diseased heart, moments after it is removed from the chest.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
Dr. Weinstein (right) uses a needle-driver to put stitches in the baby’s aorta, and prepares to hook it up to the heart-lung machine.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The new heart, moments before being placed inside the infant’s chest.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The healthy donor heart, which is roughly the size of the plum.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
Dr. Weinstein and Dr. William Jakobleff (left), the surgeon who harvested the donor heart, prepare the organ for implantation. “If you look into the chest cavity,” Dr. Weinstein says, “there’s no heart there. That’s an empty space.”
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The surgical team begins the implantation process.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The donor heart has been implanted, and the surgical team waits—in near silence—for the first heartbeat. The baby’s heart starts beating five minutes later, but, says Dr. Weinstein, the process can sometimes take hours.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
Dr. Weinstein and the surgical team watch the baby’s blood pressure, EKG, and oxygen level on a monitor.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
“We see that the heart is beating again, and it looks strong,” says Dr. Weinstein, “so we’ve made a decision to close.” It’s now been nearly six hours since the baby was brought into the operating room.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The baby’s mother embraces Dr. Weinstein after he tells her the surgery was a success.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The infant’s uncle (left), grandmother, and father celebrate the good news.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
The baby's mother takes in the moment.
Photo: Q. Sakamaki/Redux
Dr. Weinstein on his way to the locker room after the operation. “It’s just relief now that the patient is fine,” he says. “I can relax.”