Louisiana

New noninvasive heart surgery saves New Orleans twins. They graduated Kindergarten in May.

Published

7 months ago

May 31, 2025

New noninvasive heart surgery saves New Orleans twins. They graduated Kindergarten in May.

Ashley Lane gave birth in July of 2019 to twins 17 weeks before her due date.

Both boys had patent ductus arteriosus, or PDA, a congenital heart defect where a blood vessel that allows blood to bypass the lungs in the womb, fails to close after birth — along with other health concerns like lung damage.

“With being so premature,” Lane said. “There were so many what-ifs and question marks and things in the air of what would be wrong with them.”

The Metairie family waited three weeks for the holes in their children’s hearts to heal on their own.

They did not.

Then, the family met with Dr. Ivory Crittendon, a pediatric cardiologist and the co-chief of pediatric cardiology at Ochsner Medical Complex in New Orleans.

Crittendon wanted to try a new FDA-approved method and device, the Amplatzer Piccolo Occluder, to close the twins’ hearts using a catheter in the leg.

The Lane family said yes.

“That first day with Dr. Crittendon set the tone for our whole story. We definitely had such a sense of peace,” Lane said. “When your kids are born that young, and everything that you planned was totally out of your control, and you had to learn to let go very, very, very quickly and trust strangers with your most prized possession, it’s very vulnerable.”

One week later, the twins were taken into back-to-back procedures as among of the first patients in Louisiana to receive treatment.

The previous treatment for PDAs was to perform open-heart surgery, where the doctor would create an incision along the side of the body and crack the chest of the child.

“I think there’s been enough data through all the years to prove that open-heart surgery probably wasn’t the best form of PDA closures,” Crittendon said. “Because a lot of kids struggled for a number of reasons afterwards.”

PDAs are more common in premature babies than mature babies, according to Crittendon. The more mature a child is born, the more likely the hole in the blood vessel is to close on its own.

In this new procedure, Crittendon and his team at Ochsner insert a catheter into the leg of an infant as small as 700 grams (the twins were 770g and 817g at the time of the surgery). Then, through the catheter tube, the surgeon places a device that will facilitate tissue to grow around the hole in the heart.

“It starts the natural process of the PDA closing,” Crittendon said. “It basically augments that process and tissues, sort of envelops around the device and closes the PDA on both sides.”

According to the Crittendon, the most impactful part of the noninvasive procedure is that the recovery time is exponentially higher for the very small, vulnerable patients.

“We take out that hollow tube and take out that small IV and just leave a Band-Aid on the leg,” Crittendon said. “And there’s really no real recovery from the procedure, which is the best part.”

The Lane twins’ hearts have since grown over the devices, and, after five years of checkups, they have gotten their approval from Crittendon to wait another three years for their next visit with the doctors. They both graduated kindergarten in May.

According to Lane, the twins are doing every sport they can get their hands on — soccer just ended, and they are looking to pick up baseball this summer.

“We know that there are so many babies out there that are not as fortunate, and families that are not as fortunate to have this procedure,” Lane said. “This is their second time around playing all these sports. They are really getting the hang of it and enjoying their sporting activities and being competitive against each other as twins.”

Treating patients in the future

The team of physicians, nurses and anesthesiologists that performs the new Piccolo procedure is based at Ochsner Children’s Hospital in New Orleans.

While the team has made moves to travel between hospitals within New Orleans to perform the live-saving procedure, they have also transported patients from around the state and Mississippi for treatment.

“That’s something that we’ve been proud of that we’ve been able to do,” Crittendon said. “However, we’ve sort of led the nation on trying to bring the therapy to the babies, rather than transporting them.”

Going forward, the team hopes to expand their ability to perform the procedure to patients outside of New Orleans, to hospitals within the health system across the state.

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Louisiana

This Japanese partnership will advance carbon capture in Louisiana

Published

9 hours ago

December 12, 2025

Press Room

Newlab New Orleans is deepening its energy-tech ambitions with a new partnership alongside JERA, Japan’s largest power generator, to accelerate next-generation carbon capture solutions for heavy industries across Louisiana and the Gulf Coast, The Center Square writes.

The collaboration brings JERA Ventures into Newlab’s public-private innovation hub, where startups gain access to lab space and high-end machinery to commercialize technologies aimed at cutting emissions and improving industrial efficiency.

The move builds momentum as Newlab prepares to open its fifth global hub next fall at the former Naval Support Activity site, adding New Orleans to a network that includes Riyadh and Detroit. JERA’s footprint in Louisiana is already growing—from a joint venture on CF Industries’ planned $4 billion low-carbon ammonia plant to investments in solar generation and Haynesville shale assets—positioning the company as a significant player in the state’s clean-energy transition.

Read the full story.

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Louisiana

Fed’s ‘Catahoula Crunch’ finished its first week in Louisiana

Published

21 hours ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Federal immigration authorities are keeping a tight lid on key details as “Catahoula Crunch” closes its first week in southeast Louisiana, Verite writes.

The operation—one of Department of Homeland Security’s largest recent urban crackdowns—began with raids at home-improvement stores and aims for 5,000 arrests, according to plans previously reviewed by the Associated Press. While DHS publicly highlighted arrests of immigrants with violent criminal records, AP data shows fewer than one-third of the 38 detainees in the first two days had prior convictions.

Meanwhile, advocacy groups report widespread fear in Hispanic communities, with residents avoiding hospitals, schools, workplaces and even grocery stores amid sightings of federal agents.

Business impacts are already visible: restaurants and Hispanic-serving corridors like Broad Street appear unusually quiet, with staff shortages forcing menu cuts and temporary closures. School absenteeism has doubled in Jefferson Parish, and protests have spread across New Orleans and surrounding suburbs as local leaders demand transparency around federal tactics.

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Louisiana

Louisiana State Police hosts open house to recruit new troopers

Published

1 day ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Louisiana State Police hosts open house to recruit new troopers

BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — The Louisiana State Police is opening its doors throughout December, hosting open house events aimed at giving potential applicants a closer look at what it takes to become a state trooper.

Troop leaders said the goal is to recruit men and women who are prepared for the demands of the job and committed to serving their communities.

Troop A Public Information Officer Shelby Mayfield said the open houses are designed to make the application process more accessible.

“One of the reasons we generated these open houses was to allow our applicants to come in and get a look inside the troop, meet some state troopers from across the troop area, and ask whatever questions they may have to the recruiters who are present,” Mayfield said.

Along with information sessions, Mayfield said the events help future applicants better understand the daily responsibilities of law enforcement and the mindset troopers are expected to bring to the job.

“We want to make sure that that trooper knows how important officer safety is,” he said. “But more importantly, we want to make sure they go out there with a pure heart.”

The Louisiana State Police Training Academy is known for its rigorous curriculum that prepares cadets for real-world situations. From crash investigations to communication skills, instructors focus on developing well-rounded troopers who can serve safely and effectively.

Mayfield said applicants must be ready for a variety of interactions, not just emergencies.

“Not everything is going to be a high-intensity, rapidly evolving situation,” he said. “You need to be able to deal with the public to accomplish your job, and that’s why we preach not just getting the job done, but being able to relate to the public so you can meet their needs.”

The application deadline for Cadet Class 109 is Jan. 6, 2026. Mayfield encourages anyone who feels called to the profession to take the next step.

“If this is something you genuinely have in your heart to do, reach out to somebody when it’s convenient for you,” he said. “Even if you miss a deadline, never give up because it’s never too late.”

Open house events will continue throughout the month at troop locations across Louisiana. More information on Cadet Class 109 and the application process is available on the Louisiana State Police website.