Two-Year-Old Girl Has Too Many Veins And Could Develop Fatal Blood Clot

The family of a two-year-old girl in the US, who has twice as many veins as normal, are fearing she could develop a life-threatening blood clot at any time.

Cambree Hensley, from Oklahoma City, is plagued by Klippel-Trenaunay syndrome (KTS), a condition which impacts the development of blood vessels, soft tissues, and bones, meaning she has more veins in her body than usual. The condition affects just one in 100,000 people worldwide.

Cambree’s mother Ashley, 32, said that her daughter experiences pain every day, and her increased blood flow causes swelling putting her at high risk of developing a fatal blood clot. Unfortunately, doctors can not tell if or when this will happen, because every case of KTS is unique.

Due to the condition, Cambree’s left leg is two-and-a-half inches wider and an inch longer than her right, which often causes her to lose balance and fall over because the increased blood flow makes her leg heavier. So, she wears specially designed shoes with a one inch orthopedic lift to help her walk.

Immediately after she was born at Oklahoma’s Norman Regional HealthPlex in August 2013, doctors noticed a port wine stain, that looked like a birthmark, covering most of Cambree’s left leg.

Mrs Hensley was left heartbroken when doctors told her the mark could signify more serious underlying problems, and they would need to monitor it.

The next morning, Cambree was examined by paediatricians and a dermatologist, who could not agree on a diagnosis, because KTS is so rare.

Six days later, Cambree’s parents took her to Cook Children’s Hospital in Texas where she was checked by a neurosurgeon, a genetics doctor and a haematologist.

Cambree was officially diagnosed with KTS at eight days old, and doctors explained that her condition was potentially life-threatening, because of the increased likelihood of blood clotting.

For the first eight months of Cambree’s life, the family felt very isolated.

Mrs Hensley said:

“We were happy to get a diagnosis, but nervous as we were told the condition gets worse with time.

“I feel scared out of my mind, but it’s my job to be a strong mum for Cambree. Every day I get people saying, “What’s wrong with her leg?” It hurts a little bit, but I’ve taught her to say, “It’s my pretty birthmark”.

“She is still our strong angel though and loves dancing around.”

So, the family decided to join support groups for KTS sufferers on Facebook. Through the network, they discovered Boston’s Children’s Hospital in Massachusetts, and within two months of contacting them, surgeons there recommended closing off Cambree’s extra vein, to slow down the blood flow.

In April last year, Cambree was admitted to the Boston facility for ‘vein mapping’ a type of ultrasound used to monitor flow. She also had a special glue inserted into the major veins to minimise it, laser treatment to toughen the skin on her leg to make bleeding easier, and sclerotherapy to shut off some of her smaller veins.

In September 2015, she underwent further laser therapy, surgery to remove three extra veins and a couple of non-life threatening blood clots in her leg.

Now, Cambree’s parents are fundraising for her annual check ups in Boston and further surgery, in a bid to close the main extra vein down and lower her chances of developing a debilitating blood clot.

Source: Dailymail.co.uk