Last week, Diane and I took a quick drive to Las Vegas for a very special occasion.

Thursday, Feb. 18, was the second birthday for little Camden, our grandson who was born with the heart defect known as Tetralogy of Fallot.

Yes, it’s already been two years since I wrote about going to see him for the first time when he was in Sunrise Children’s Hospital in Las Vegas.

When I first saw him, he looked like a normal baby, sleeping peacefully, wrapped in a white blanket. A closer look showed the many wires connecting to overhead monitors.

We were somewhat prepared to see him like that since his heart condition showed up on an ultrasound three months earlier.

He underwent a five- hour surgery to correct four problems with his heart at the age of four months. In his first year, he surgical procedures to install two heart caths, installation of a stent and installation of a Gtube. That was removed this past November.

With Camden’s heart defects problems apparently taken care of, other than annual checkups, his mom and dad, Toni and Jason, can’t wait to have him play soccer and baseball. We’re all so thankful he's doing so well. He runs everywhere he goes. Thank you for all of your kind words and prayers.

I found out that February is Congenital Heart Defects Awareness Month.

I thought this would be a good time to talk about heart defects and what is being done about them.

A normal heart has valves, arteries and chambers that carry the blood in a circuit-lungs-heart-body.

When all chambers and valves work correctly, the blood is pumped through the heart, to the lungs for oxygen, back to the heart and out to the body for delivery of oxygen. When valves, chambers and veins are malformed, this circulation pattern can be impaired.

Congenital heart defects are malformations that are present at birth. They may or may not have a disruptive effect on a person's circulatory system. They result when a mishap occurs during heart development soon after conception and often before the mother is aware that she is pregnant.

Defects range in severity from simple problems, such as "holes" between chambers of the heart, to very severe malformations, such as complete absence of one or more chambers or valves.

Anyone can have a child with a congenital heart defect. Out of 1,000 births, at least eight babies will have some form of congenital heart disorder, most of which are mild. The reason they occur is not known.

Most people presume that heart defects to be genetic, however, only a few genes have been discovered to have been linked to the presence of heart defects.

The presence of a serious heart defect often results in an enormous emotional and financial strain on young families at a very vulnerable time. Patient/family education is an important part of successful coping.

Successful treatment requires highly specialized care. Severe congenital heart disease requires extensive financial resources both in and out of the hospital. Children with developmental delay also require community and school-based resources to achieve optimum functioning.

CHD Awareness Month also gives light to the need for people to consider being an organ donor.