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At just five days old, little Samuel Orlando Milanés García began to show alarming signs: persistent vomiting, rejection of food, and a discomfort that worried his mother, Sandra García.
What seemed to be a temporary issue turned into a devastating diagnosis: a congenital duodenal obstruction, a malformation that prevents the normal passage of food from the stomach to the small intestine and requires immediate surgery.
According to the official newspaper Ahora, from Holguín, Samuel was transferred from the province of Granma to the Regional Neonatal Surgery Center, where a medical team prepared to intervene in a race against time.
In that center, with over 40 years of experience, the most complex cases of newborns from eastern Cuba are treated.
The baby's clinical picture raised all the alarms. The doctors identified the problem through an abdominal X-ray that confirmed the obstruction.
The protocol required swift action: to suspend oral feeding, stabilize the patient, and schedule the surgery.
In the words of Dr. Yanet Hidalgo Marrero, the lead surgeon on the case, “we work on extremely fragile structures; a millimeter can make the difference between success and failure.”
The highly complex operation had a single objective: to restore the normal flow of food.
During the procedure, several specialists participated—surgeons, anesthesiologists, and neonatologists—who successfully stabilized the baby and corrected the malformation without complications.
Her mother recounted to the Holguin media the moments of anguish before receiving the diagnosis: “It was like a horror movie. We didn’t know what was happening. It could be an infection or a deformity, and everything was happening too quickly,” she said, still moved.
In the midst of uncertainty, Sandra emphasized the communication with the doctors: “They explained everything clearly and accompanied us every step of the way.”
The family, exhausted from the tension, found in that closeness an emotional relief amidst the seriousness of the situation.
The Octavio de la Concepción y de la Pedraja pediatric hospital, where the surgery was performed, is facing a shortage of medical supplies such as probes, antibiotics, and specialized sutures.
Nevertheless, the specialists prioritized the case and managed to ensure that Samuel came out of the operation stable.
Today, the baby is recovering under medical supervision. His story, reported by the newspaper Ahora, summarizes the blend of fear, hope, and resilience that characterizes many Cuban families when a child's health relies on scarce resources and the human effort of those who continue to fight.
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