It can be a parent's worst nightmare ... A major heart defect found in their child during a routine exam. One Antrim County family lived through the crisis, and can now say their four year old daughter is a happy, healthy little girl, just weeks after open heart surgery.

"Cora likes to play at the beach, she likes to camp, she likes to run," says Cora's dad, Mark Ruhling. His energetic four year old was not able to enjoy so much playtime just two months ago, before she had open heart surgery. "She had ASD, which is Atrial Septal Defect," Mark explains. "It's a hole between the two atria, the top two chambers in the heart."

The Ruhling family lives in Ellsworth, and first noticed a problem when Cora was just two months old, after her parents took her to her Pediatrician for a common childhood ailment. Doctor Neal Hillman, a Cardiologist with Helen DeVos Children's Hospital in Grand Rapids says Cora's heart defect was found early. "With Cora she was noted to have an enlarged heart on an echocardiogram." Since her diagnosis as an infant, her young life has been filled with many doctors appointments first in Lansing, and then at DeVos Children's Hospital where she hit a pivotal point in her care. Doctors decided it was time for open heart surgery to fix the problem. "The family noticed she wasn't quite as active as she had been, taking naps a little more often," says Doctor Hillman. "Also on the Echocardiogram the heart was starting to enlarge and that all points to its time to do something about it."

Cora's parents also say her health condition was stunting her growth, as well as preventing her from enjoying the activities she loved. "At the beach she could only be in the water for about five minutes at a time because the blood wouldn't flow to her extremities , so her hands would turn purple because the blood wouldn't keep them warm."

But despite undergoing major surgery, it didn't take Cora long to bounce back to an active little girl. In fact Doctor Hillman says it's usually his younger patients who recover quickly. "Really most kids before they even leave the hospital, they are wanting to go to the playroom and back to normal activities." Cora's mom, Mary Alice, was also surprised by her daughters recovery. "Open heart surgery and they send you home three days later with Children's Tylenol it's kind of amazing."

Just as amazing is watching little Cora run and play with her family. It's that recovery that Doctor Hillman says he enjoys having a hand in. "The kids are more active, they are happy. The family has their child back."

Cora's dad says she is expected to make up for lost time with her growth, and says she's already gained a couple of pounds since her surgery in June.