Brave Tayside youngster Oliver Bosch is in intensive care with heart problems after his latest operation, his family has revealed.
Parents Jemma and Ben Bosch told friends and supporters that surgery had gone well but that the stresses and strains of the past few months had taken a toll.
At his bedside they first heard that he required to be put on a respirator to help him breathe and were then told he had developed pneumonia in his right lung.
Nonetheless, the former Dundee couple, who now live in Carnoustie, are hopeful that his recovery will be swift and have pledged to update supporters through the Oliver Bosch Appeal, which has been raising money to help him hear.
Oliver was born profoundly deaf and has undergone pioneering surgery to help him overcome the rare Goldenhar syndrome, which affects just one in 500,000 people.
Jemma said: “He is in intensive care and will be for a few days. His operation went well but we were told there had been a problem with his heart.
“It’s enlarged on the right side because it has had to work so hard keeping him breathing at nights for the last few months.
“He is on a ventilator, which is breathing for him at the moment and is being tube fed.”
The couple had hoped to see him taken off that ventilator, only for a further complication to get in the way.
Jemma said: “He has been started on antibiotics for his pneumonia but will probably not be able to breathe for himself for another couple of days.”
Sadly for all the family, including doting older sister Darcey, that means Oliver will definitely not be home in time for his fourth birthday on Friday.
In 2013, Oliver was fitted with a pioneering brain stem implant to help him hear after his parents raised £60,000 to fund surgery in Italy and the US.
Doctors had found he had no auditory or balance nerves and was unsuitable for a cochlear implant, meaning the ground-breaking surgery was the best option.
The family moved to Carnoustie following the operation to be nearer to specialist services for the deaf.
They have been delighted with his progress and in May told The Courier of the emotional experience of hearing him say his first word.
To support Oliver, visit www.gofundme.com/helpoliverhear.