Viagra is keeping my little girl alive

Published on Monday 1 September 2008 09:57

A SEVEN-year-old girl with a rare illness is being kept alive thanks to four doses of Viagra a day.

Natalie Archibald, from Musselburgh, fell ill 18 months ago, with medics at first putting it down to over-excitement.

But she was later found to be a rare childhood sufferer of the lung condition Primary Pulmonary Hypertension and was taken to Great Ormond Street children's hospital in London.

It was there that she was prescribed Viagra and it has been credited with saving her life.

Mother Janis Archibald admitted the drug, better known for assisting men's sex lives, did come from an unlikely source.

"At first when we saw the programme of drugs, Viagra was given the proper medical name (of Sildenafil or Revatio] so we didn't know what it was. It was only when we looked into it a bit more and, of course, then came all the jokes.

"But seriously, it has transformed her life, I've never seen her so happy. She can run, jump, skip – all the things her friends do.

"We have a wheelchair for her if she gets exhausted, but we've never had to use it, and I hope she grows out of it before we do need it."

Mrs Archibald first saw a change in her daughter on Christmas Day 2006 when she collapsed after opening presents.

Paramedics put it down to over-excitement, but when the Loretto Primary School pupil continued to pass out and regularly turned blue, Mrs Archibald was forced to quit her job as a legal secretary not only to keep a closer eye on her but to convince medics there was something wrong.

The 46-year-old, who now works part-time in B&Q, said: "It was so frustrating because I knew there was something wrong with my wee girl but no-one could find out what it was.

"It got to the stage where we had almost given up trying to find out, until a doctor new to us went back into her records and carried out some more tests and diagnosed her.

"That part was all really quick. Within two weeks we were down to Great Ormond Street Hospital and the drugs had started, but it was a long fight to get there."

Since starting the programme of drugs, she is no longer fainting or turning blue, but the condition still ultimately threatens her life.

The incurable illness causes high blood pressure in the lungs and strains the heart, with potentially fatal consequences. The Viagra helps open the arteries and improve blood flow to her lungs, allowing her to lead a normal life.

"It's very hard for us to think about, and we've not broached the subject with her," Mrs Archibald said. "They say there's a ten-year limit on it, but as long as she's stable like she is just now then things are fine."

SPONSORED WALK TO RAISE AWARENESS

NATALIE'S family are staging a sponsored walk to raise money and highlight her condition.

Joining the 15-mile walk will be ten-year-old brother Ryan and father Stuart, 43, a valve technician at the Grangemouth refinery.

They will set off on September 7 from the Horseshoe Tavern in Musselburgh and walk to the Longniddry Inn and back to raise cash and awareness for both the Pulmonary Hypertension Association (PHA) and Great Ormond Street Hospital – where Natalie attends for checks.

A spokeswoman from the PHA said: "The disease in itself is rare, it affects around 4000 people in the UK, of which around 300 are children."

There is no set way to contract the illness, and medics are unsure how Natalie came to be affected by it. To sponsor the family on the walk e-mail Mrs Archibald at [e-mail].