The baby was born with a heart problem and only survived for a few hours.

survived 是动词 survive 的过去式，survive 由前缀 sur-（表示"超过"）和词根 vive（来自拉丁语 vivere，意为"生活"）组成，字面意思是"活得比...更久"，引申为"幸存、存活"。在这里表示"（在不利条件下）继续活着"的意思。