A Caring Collaboration at Cottage Children’s Medical Center

“I’m immensely grateful for the care Arlett received at Cottage Children’s Medical Center. The medical team worked nonstop to figure out how to help her .” – Arlett’s mother, Edlyn

Last year, four-year-old Arlett began experiencing headaches, nausea and eye pain. Her mom took her to an Urgent Care center, where providers recognized the complexity of Arlett’s issue and recommended she go directly to the ER at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.

At the ER, Dr. Rachel Cohen, a pediatrician, examined Arlett and called in Dr. Mark Silverberg, a pediatric ophthalmologist affiliated with Cottage Children’s Medical Center.

“I was about to travel out of town when Dr. Cohen contacted me about Arlett,” Dr. Silverberg said. “I had a sixth sense that this shouldn’t wait. She had a third nerve palsy, which caused a droopy eyelid and double vision, and it is relatively uncommon for children.”

The leading causes of third nerve palsy are tumors and aneurisms. After Arlett had a normal MRI, Dr. Silverberg had a hunch there was more to the story, and he wanted to find out what it was. An aneurysm needed to be excluded.

“I consulted with Dr. Bernard Chow, a radiologist at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, who suggested a CTA to look for a vascular malformation,” Dr. Silverberg said. CTA stands for Computed Tomography Angiography, a test that combines dye and X-rays to produce detailed pictures of blood vessels.

“The CTA showed there was a vascular malformation, and Arlett needed surgery to treat it,” Dr. Silverberg said. Arlett was admitted to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital and underwent successful surgery by Dr. Alois Zauner, a neurovascular surgeon at the hospital.

“Within a few days, Arlett’s droopy eyelid and double vision were resolved,” Dr. Silverberg said.

These days, Arlett is back to her happy, healthy self, singing along with her favorite princesses from the Disney movie, Frozen, and making her mom smile.

“Our children are our life,” Edlyn said. “I look at Arlett, and I’m so thankful for the care she received at Cottage.”

Dr. Silverberg added: “We are thrilled with the outcome for Arlett. It was very much a team approach at Cottage, and it really does take a village.”