Boy Born With Heart Outside His Body

Christopher was treated at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. A cardiologist, Dr. Victoria Vetter, who was operating on Christopher, recalls that Christopher's heart was "just simply ... outside the chest and pointing straight out." Vetter said the biggest risk was infection, so she and a team of doctors made every attempt to try to protect the heart and to sterilize the area as much as possible. In order to stabilize the heart during the critical hours after Christopher's birth, doctors covered the organ with moist material. (Courtesy of Teresa Wall )