Tomball teen fights to recover after suffering heart attack
TOMBALL, Texas (KTRK) -- A 15-year-old Tomball boy is in the fight of his life.
Tommy Hutchins is in rehab after suffering a heart attack while running through his neighborhood with his sister.
"He's a huge fighter," his dad, Donald Hutchins, said. "She thought he was going to wake up, that's what happened in the past."
Tommy suffers from a genetic heart condition called CPTV. Over exertion or emotional stress can cause his heartbeat to suddenly increase abnormally fast.
While he's had a few scares in the past, he's lived like a normal teenager. His family says he's an honor student who loves to have fun.
But after this latest incident on January 2, he didn't wake up.
Tommy's mom was forced to perform mouth to mouth with the help of neighbors. But there was no pulse, no breath. Tommy was out for nearly 25 minutes.
His pulse returned, but only after EMT took over.
When Tommy got to Texas Children's Hospital, doctors said he had suffered a full blown heart attack.
Doctors told the family to bring his siblings in, so they had a chance to say "I love you" in case he should die.
The Hutchins were told they did all they could do, and it was up to Tommy to keep fighting. And he did.
"He kept fighting through the morning, through the night or the next day," Donald said.
And the next day and the next day. Then Tommy spoke.
His mom said Tommy's first words were "water." Then he asked for his brother. That is when the tears began to flow.
There were more tears, like when he was able to walk for the first time, able to hold a burger, even eat on his own.
Because his brain was without oxygen for so long, it swelled. Tommy, now in rehab, is having to learn the basics all over again.
His family said they do not know when Tommy will get to go home, but with lots of prayer, he's made lots of progress.
A GoFundMe account has been launched to help Tommy's family cover his medical costs.
