Teenage heart transplant patient suffers mysterious setback

Trevor Sullivan had heart transplant last year

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Local 4 first introduced viewers to Trevor Sullivan last year, as he waited for a new heart. He finally got one and everything seemed to be going well.

But then he had a crushing setback.

Local 4 learned about the Southfield teen's story last March, while he was on the transplant list waiting for a new heart.

Then Trevor celebrated last Christmas after a successful transplant allowed him to finally go home for the holidays.

Unfortunately, this summer, Trevor had a major setback that doctors can't explain.

"He did well for the beginning part of the year," Trevor's mother, Kimberly Sullivan, said. "He went back to school in March.

The Sullivans said they were enjoying having Trevor back home and getting back into the swing of things. For the first time in a long while, they even took a family vacation -- a camping trip in July.

"It was a great week for him," Kimberly said.

After the trip, things took a turn.

"Shortly after that, he started to say his legs felt funny, but he really didn't have any further description," Kimberly said.

Trevor said his body started to feel weak.

READ: SE Michigan school community opens hearts for teen who needs one

"The week before I was admitted, we were at my grandparents' house and my cousins they were all outside playing with Nerf guns and I was going to try to run with them, but I couldn't run," Trevor said. "My legs felt like Jello."

At first, the Sullivans didn't know what to think.

"I mean, the first thing that goes through your mind, I guess, would be, goodness, is this some type of rejection transplant issue or anything like that?" Kimberly said.

Trevor was admitted back to Mott Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor, where neurologists started running a battery of tests, even consulting with doctors across the country and around the world.

Trevor spent weeks in the hospital, and doctors still couldn't explain why or what was happening to him.

"To see your kid running across the beach at a campground and throwing a football, shooting a basketball and all of a sudden he can't walk, he cant run, he cant do anything. It's like, 'Wow, what the heck just happened here?'" Kimberly said.

Doctors still don't have an exact diagnosis, but they believe Trevor might have caught a rare virus that is affecting his spine. They said they're still not 100 percent sure.

You can hear more from Trevor and his family in Sandra Ali's full story posted above.

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About the Authors:

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.