Taking her four month old daughter Audrey to the doctor for a routine newborn appointment, Jacqueline Laurent never imagined she leave with a diagnosis of a life threatening hole in the heart.

Known as ventricular septal defect, Audrey’s condition means a hole remains in the barrier between the left and right ventricles causing too much blood to be pumped to the lungs and the heart to work harder with each beat. If left untreated, it can lead to heart failure.

Audrey underwent open heart surgery at The Royal Children’s Hospital to correct the condition.

Read the full story at Sunday Herald Sun online: Our Braveheart.

Photo courtesy of the Sunday Herald Sun