SEE THE AMAZING VIDEO OF AN INFANT’S HEART BEATING OUTSIDE HER BODY AND HEAR FROM THE DOCTORS WHO PERFORMED THE LIVE-SAVING SURGERY

The mother of Audrina Cardenes has know since an ultrasound at 16 weeks that her daughter would be born with a rare condition where her heart was outside of her body. Her chances of survival were slim. But doctors announced Tuesday that Audrina is doing well after a life-saving surgery.

Although only five weeks old at this point, Audrina wearing a pink-bowed hat with several tubes and sensors strapped to her mouth and body smiles in a picture.

Dr. Charles Fraser, Jr.,the Surgeon-in-Chief at Texas Children’s Hospital where Audrina was born,wrote on the hospital’s blog that eight in every 1 million babies born have the condition formally called “ectopia cordis.” Of those, 90 percent are stillborn or don’t make it past three days of life.

After finding out about Audrina’s condition, her mother opted for surgery, rather than terminating the pregnancy or selecting comfort care, which Fraser wrote were offered to her as options

More

Editor’s note: some video and images might be considered graphic.