Baby with Rare Heart Defect Undergoes First Surgery Amidst Surrogacy Dispute in Texas
A baby named Rumi, born in Texas with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), a rare and complex heart defect, has undergone the first of a series of necessary surgeries. The procedure, known as a Norwood procedure, was performed on Monday morning, according to Lee Budner, the attorney for the parents, Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar. HLHS requires multiple surgeries, with the first typically occurring within the first weeks of life, the second between 4 to 6 months, and the third between 18 months and 5 years old, as stated by the Cleveland Clinic. The baby's birth and subsequent medical care are at the center of a legal dispute between the parents, who are from California, and the surrogate, McKenna West, from Alaska. The parents had previously asked West to have an abortion after learning of the defect, which she refused. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton intervened, securing a court order mandating life-saving medical care for the baby and assigning medical decision-making to Gilkar and Ahmed. This orde... 
