Surgery joy for heart reverse boy

The condition meant Alec had little chance of survival

A three-year-old County Durham boy born with a "back to front" heart has made a full recovery after undergoing a complex eight-hour operation.

Alec Hutchison suffered from congenitally corrected transposition, which meant his arteries were connected to the wrong chambers of his heart.

Now the toddler, from Dipton, is full of energy, say his parents.

It is the first time the operation to turn a heart around has been performed at Newcastle's Freeman Hospital.

Alec's skin had a blue tinge and he was often breathless because of reduced oxygen levels in his blood, meaning he had little chance of survival.

There had been a one in five chance he might not survive the vital operation, but surgeons said the procedure went extremely smoothly.

The Freeman Hospital will now offer the procedure to children diagnosed with similar conditions.