Forever in Our Hearts: Landen’s Brave Battle with LQTS

Landen was a walking, talking, basketball-playing, laughing, loving miracle. Nothing could keep him from living life on his terms. 

On July 7th, 2006, Chaka and Jason received a life-changing call—a little boy who had undergone surgery at just four days old needed a loving family. Without a moment's hesitation, they welcomed Landen into their lives. The nurses assured Chaka that his heart condition had been "fixed," but Landen had an aggressive form of Long QT Syndrome type 3, which was being managed with a pediatric pacemaker and propranolol. 

At just seven months old, Landen suffered a cardiac arrest while sleeping. Miraculously, Chaka had a dream that Landen was in distress, prompting her to check on him. She found him unresponsive, but Jason’s performing CPR and the paramedics’ intervention saved Landen’s life. “Landen was meant to be a part of our family,” Chaka says. Following this, Landen received an ICD implant and was prescribed Mexiletine. 

At age four, Landen underwent a left-sided sympathetic denervation, but it didn’t stabilize his rhythm. With Long QT type 3, his QT interval prolonged more during rest. “I didn’t sleep through the night for nearly a decade because Landen often woke up screaming from the shocks,” Chaka recalls. 

In his final year, Landen’s condition worsened despite high doses of propranolol and Mexiletine. Early-onset puberty made his heart erratic and unmanageable. His ICD delivered so many life-saving shocks that he was on his sixth device by the time he passed away. Doctors made the difficult decision to place a central line and administer a portable lidocaine drip, which briefly stabilized his heart but tragically led to lidocaine toxicity, causing a series of seizures. On the last night of his life, the rescue medication intended to stop his seizure tragically stopped his heart instead. 

“I would tell other parents dealing with Long QT Syndrome to let their children live. No child deserves to live under the shadow of a parent’s fear.” 

Chaka reflects on the journey: “We leaned heavily on our faith, and we saw God perform many miracles through Landen’s life. Nine days before he died, Landen prayed a prayer that still amazes me.”  

“I’m a different person because I get to be Landen’s mama—a privilege I will claim all the way to heaven. He taught me to keep getting back up, no matter how many times I get knocked down. And he taught me to shoot as many hoops as you can whenever you get the chance. I’ll miss him until I see him again.” 

To learn more about Long QT Syndrome, visit The SADS Foundation website at: www.sads.org. 

Author: David Hutton.