Perry Hall Elementary Student Survives Illness, Returns to School

At 7 years old, Emma Burke is a cheerleader, a lacrosse player and a math whiz in her first-grade class at .

But all of these activities were put on hold while Emma endured nearly four months of extensive medical treatment. On Wednesday, with the hope of fully returning to normalcy, she spent her first day back at school, said her father, Shawn Burke.

"She's my hero—the amount of stuff she's had to go through," said Burke, the men's lacrosse coach at the Community College of Baltimore County Essex.

At the end of January, Emma experienced her second severe seizure within six weeks. A collapsed lung and pneumonia worsened her condition. She was transferred from to the University of Maryland's Children's Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. For about six weeks, she was able to breathe only with the assistance of a ventilator, while fully sedated, Burke said.

"It was really, really tough, especially for my wife," he said.

Susan Burke, who works for Union Memorial Hospital, took a temporary leave from her job to spend her days at Emma's bedside. Shawn coached during the day and spent his nights with Emma. While both parents also cared for their 2-year-old daughter, Brynn, he said he rarely saw his wife for months.

"It was tough, but it brought us closer as a family," Shawn Burke said.

Emma was transferred to the Kennedy Krieger Institute for rehabilitation. All of her teachers at visited and encouraged her, Shawn Burke said.

"She came back so fast," he said.

Since Emma's release, she has become somewhat of a minor celebrity. Last Thursday, she visited her classmates and teachers. The school's roadside sign was changed to read, "Welcome Home Emma!"

She was also recently presented with balloons at White Marsh Mall from the entire CCBC Essex men's lacrosse team.

"She's 7, so she's a little overwhelmed by it all," Shawn Burke said.

Doctors hope that medication will help prevent a similar situation from happening again. For now, Emma's healthy, he said. "She's already running around the neighborhood like a normal kid."