Patient Story: 
Meet Landon
A Family’s Perspective
While on ECMO, Landon suffered a significant stroke. 
But baby brains are incredible. Neuroplasticity 
is the brain’s superpower during infancy, as the 
brain rewires itself at a rapid rate. And now, we are 
watching it work in real time.
The miracle of Landon’s survival was only the 
beginning. The road since has demanded not 
just strength from him, but from our entire family. 
We spent five weeks in the hospital, commuting 
back and forth while trying to maintain a sense of 
normalcy for our two older sons – then ages 5 and 
8 – who suddenly found themselves without their 
parents at home, relying on grandparents and friends 
for rides to school and overnight care.
Today, the team effort continues as we watch Landon 
defy the odds.
Landon Jean Kukla entered the world on May 8, 
2023, at 5:12 a.m. – healthy, full-term, weighing 
8 pounds, 2 ounces, and measuring 21.5 inches 
long. He enjoyed his first hour on earth in the 
arms of his parents. Then, everything changed.
Landon began showing signs of respiratory 
distress. Thanks to the quick instincts of his 
aunt, an experienced, 11-year NICU nurse, 
and the staff at Jupiter Medical Center, he 
was whisked away to Jupiter Medical Center’s 
NICU where he was diagnosed with Persistent 
Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn 
(PPHN), a rare condition where a newborn’s 
circulatory system doesn’t adapt to breathing 
outside the womb. The decision was made 
to airlift him to Nicklaus Children’s Hospital 
in Miami so that he could receive lifesaving, 
elevated medical support. 
Shortly after arriving at Nicklaus Children’s 
Hospital, Landon was placed on ECMO, a heart-
lung bypass machine that oxygenated his blood 
and allowed his heart and lungs to rest. For 
three long days that machine kept our son alive.
“From the NICU to now, Landon has shown us what true strength looks like.”
– Caley Kukla, Landon’s mom

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