Curlewis bub Wren Vodopic to undergo open heart surgery after being born with hole in heart

A Curlewis baby born with a hole in her heart will undergo open heart surgery in the coming weeks.

Curlewis bub Wren was born with a hole in her heart and will undergo surgery. Pictured with mum heart mum Kelsey Clark, brother Myles, 14 months old, and dad Adrian Vodopic. Picture: Mark Wilson

A Curlewis newborn will undergo open heart surgery in the coming weeks after doctors found a large hole in her heart.

Wren Vodopic was born on December 27, 2023 at Geelong hospital and mum Kelsey Clark said her baby girl was “perfectly healthy”.

“Nothing had come up on my scans when I was pregnant either,” she said.

Ms Clark and her partner, Adrian Vodopic, were about to take their newborn home when doctors told them Wren had a “bad” heart murmur.

Baby Wren and mum Kelsey Clark. Picture: Mark Wilson

Heart murmurs are common in children and typically go away with time.

While at home, the mother of two said Wren had trouble feeding and was not putting on weight.

About two weeks later, they took Wren back to the hospital and doctors ran multiple tests and ultrasounds.

“They found a large hole in her heart,” Ms Clark said.

“(Wren) has a large hole in between the two parts of her heart that needs to be patched up.”

Some holes can close on their own but larger ones may require surgery.

“As soon they said she would have to have surgery, it was big shock,” Ms Clark said.

“It was very upsetting.”

Wren is expected to undergo open heart surgery at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne in the coming weeks.

“The recovery is about a week but it depends on how she is going, if she can go home earlier or if she will need to stay (at the hospital) for any complications,” Ms Clark said.

She said Wren was a “little love bug”.

“She is a very cuddly baby and very loving,” she said.

A GoFundMe page has been established to help support the family cover the cost of the surgery, which has garnered more than $2000.

Ms Clark said she was “so grateful” for the donations.

“I’ve had tears in my eyes for the amount of people that have helped and support us,” she said.

To support the family, visit gofundme.com/our-little-girl-wren-for-her-heart-surgery.

Originally published as Curlewis bub Wren Vodopic to undergo open heart surgery after being born with hole in heart