Brittan Allison loves cheese flavored goldfish crackers, riding around in his big brother’s motorized car, playing on the swings and jumping high in the air on the family’s trampoline in the backyard. It’s not exactly what I expected when I heard that I would be meeting a two year old boy who had a debilitating heart disorder. He was born without a left ventricle and underwent three open heart surgeries before his second birthday.

Brittan Allison

Adding to an already rough start to his young life, Brittan suffered three strokes. His parents, Billy and Paige Allison, told me the story of the day he had his first. He was napping in his room upstairs. Paige heard a scream over the baby monitor, not a cry, but a scream. She went upstairs to find Brittan curled up in the fetal position in the corner of his crib. Brittan was limp and lifeless when she picked him up, it would be the first of three scary trips to the hospital. As a result of all three strokes, he walks with a limp, does not have use of one of his arms and has little to no speech.

Thanks to the efforts of a team of doctors at Duke University Medical Center, Brittan is enjoying the vibrant and active life you would expect to see out of every two year old boy. To prevent any more strokes doctors made a surprising move and prescribed Plavix. It’s a drug that inhibits platelets in the blood from gathering and creating clots. You might think of your grandparents or any typical heart attack patient when you think of someone taking Plavix, but Brittan is one of many children around the country who are benefiting from prescriptions manufactured for adults.

Doctors had to work to get the correct dosage for a two year old, but it wasn’t long before Billy and Paige could breathe a little easier in hope that there would be no more strokes. Brittan’s doctors tell me that kids are dealing with more and more adult-sized health problems these days. The medicine to correct or deal with those problems exist, but only in adult forms. They are creative and adjust dosages to meet the needs of infants and toddlers, but many in the healthcare field say pharmaceutical companies need to test and develop medications especially for kids. According to a University of Michigan Study, 75% of the medications on the market cannot be used for kids. A staggering statistic for parents who’s only hope comes in the form of a little pill.

When I first walked into the Allison home in Burlington, North Carolina Brittan buried his face in his mother’s arms and barely made eye contact. He wasn’t sure what to make of the strangers who were setting up lights and cameras in the middle of his living room. But by the time we left, Brittan warmed up to us and started showing his true outgoing personality. While packing up and moving our equipment, Brittan made sure he gave us all high fives before we left. He couldn’t speak the words, but the slight wave of his hand and a smile was his way of wishing us a friendly “goodbye.”

As we left the Allison home, Brittan’s father shook my hand and said something to me that made me realize how resilient and hopeful families can become after facing scary moments and tough times. Despite sleepless night’s in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, praying against what must have been hopeless odds and not knowing what the future holds for their little boy who has been through so much, Billy Allison looked at me and said “We have a lot to be thankful for.” The next time life’s challenges are getting the best of you, remember that.

The Allison’s helped us with a very important subject matter. Should kids be taking prescriptions intended for adults and what responsibility does the pharmaceutical companies have in making sure vital medicines are available to all patients regardless of their age and size. Watch for our story later this week during our “America’s Future” segment.