Teenager With Hole In Her Heart Told She Cannot Have Operation...Until She Has A Heart Attack

A teenage girl with a hole in her heart has been told that she cannot have an NHS operation to fix it – unless she has a heart attack.

Carla Maclean, from Abbeydale in Gloucestershire, was found to have a hole in her heart three years ago during a routine check-up.

However despite suffering regularly from palpitations, breathlessness and headaches, the NHS have refused her an operation, saying she would have to experience a ‘major episode’ – in other words, a heart attack.

‘When we went for the meeting I thought the specialist was going to give me a date for the operation, not tell me I couldn’t have it,’ said Carla.

‘The NHS will only fund it if I have a heart attack or a stroke.

‘I’m worried I may drop dead if I exercise or do anything too strenuous.’

Cardiologists told Carla that a private procedure would guarantee her health, but the operation costs £16,000.

Carla is attempting to take matters into her own hands – writing to her local MP and fundraising – but she says her condition is having a damaging effect on her everyday life.

‘I can’t work, every time I exercise I feel like someone is punching me in the chest and I’ve had so many knock-backs I’m on anti-depressants now,’ she said.

A spokesperson for the NHS said: ‘Patent Foramen Ovale closure [Carla's defect] is not routinely commissioned by the NHS and would only be considered if the case is deemed exceptional by the individual’s clinician.’