Wisconsin Toddler Beats the Odds; Leaves Hospital After Two-Year Stay

A 3-year-old with a rare kidney condition left the hospital, which was home to him for 640 days. Kingston Vang-Wraggs was discharged from the American Family Children's Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin, part of the UW (University of Wisconsin) Health Kids System, after approximately two years.

According to ABC News, Kingston received a kidney transplant and fought off flesh-eating bacterial infections, among other challenges.

Tommy Wraggs, Kingston's father, stated that his son's ordeal began in September 2020 when he observed that his son, who was born with Chronic Kidney Disease, was having cramps one evening.

He immediately rushed Kingston to the local hospital in Wausau, Wisconsin. He later brought him to the American Family Children's for additional aftercare. 

Read Also: Father and Daughter Lawyers Are Each Other's Kidney Donor and Recipient

Kingston got his transplant

However, the 3-year-old was immediately diagnosed with Congenital Nephrotic Syndrome, a rare kidney disorder that causes the body to pass too much protein in the urine. Protein is essential for regulating fluids in the body, managing infections, and promoting growth and development.

According to Dr. Neil Paloian, a pediatric nephrologist and one of Kingston's doctors, the toddler's kidney would never work properly, and a kidney transplant is the only cure. Because he was too small, there was no assurance that Kingston's body could handle it.

Thus, they managed the disease while he grew big enough to receive a transplant. The toddler had a port inserted to gain supplemental albumin, a protein that bears hormones, vitamins, and enzymes throughout the body.

Kingston also received more or less 20 additional daily medications, many through the IV and feedings using a gastronomy tube or G-Tube, which was surgically attached to the stomach to assist Kingston in receiving the nutrition and hydration he needed.

When he was one year old, both his kidneys were removed, and he needed to be on dialysis. It worked well for the first few months, but in September 2020, Wraggs noticed his son seemed restless, so he quickly took him to the emergency room.

Looking back, Paloian said he learned a lot from Kingston's journey. He added there's a reason they don't give up on kids as they know how strong and resilient they are, and Kingston is the prototype example of that, per Good Morning America.

A miracle patient

Kingston finally got out of the hospital after nine months in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and more than a year in the medical-surgical unit at the American Family Children's Hospital.

Paloian noted that the toddler's body was puffy and had very abnormal labs when he first came in.

Tommy said that his son, born in October 2018, seemed healthy as most newborns, but when he reached his third month, a bulge appeared in his abdomen.

The La Crosse physician told them they needed to go to American Family Children's Hospital as soon as possible.

"I can't believe we've made it here," said Tommy. "When I think back to how my son was hanging on by a thread for so long, I feel so grateful to be at this point now," he added, per UW Health.

Paloian said that Congenital Nephrotic Syndrome is quite uncommon, even for a rare disease, and in his seven years of service at UW, Kingston has been the only case they've diagnosed.

Related Article: Dad Receives Kidney from Frontline Daughter