Overview
- Maria Carlin chose to keep driving her 4-year-old to Huntington Hospital when his breathing stopped during a late‑July episode, arriving to blare her horn and rush him inside.
- Emergency staff led by Dr. Jennifer Gibb initiated a pediatric code blue and restored Jack’s pulse after nearly ten minutes of CPR and critical interventions.
- After stabilization, Jack was transferred to Cohen Children’s Medical Center, where pediatric airway specialists identified a laryngeal cleft that had been difficult to detect.
- Chief of pediatric otolaryngology Dr. Lee Smith performed corrective surgery without complications and noted the case was an unusually severe presentation of the condition.
- Northwell says laryngeal cleft affects an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 births each year, and Jack’s family is sharing their experience to help others recognize persistent croup-like symptoms.