Alive, and beating the odds: Premature child weighing 480 gm born in Pune
A child born in June, believed to be the smallest, in terms of weight, to have survived a premature birth in Maharashtra, went home this past week after spending 100 days in the neo-natal ICU in Pune
PUNE A child born in June, believed to be the smallest, in terms of weight, to have survived a premature birth in Maharashtra, went home this past week after spending 100 days in the neo-natal ICU.
The baby was born at a private hospital after 26 weeks of pregnancy by an emergency Caesarean section due to pregnancy-related hypertension in the mother.
Weighing only 480 grammes, the baby was immediately put on to life support with a tiny endotracheal tube in the windpipe.
The child was also wrapped in a plastic bag to prevent heat loss after birth.
“In such babies, management within the first golden hour after birth is very important. Babies of this size need mechanical ventilator support immediately after birth due to immature lungs. Extreme preterm babies are also at risk of dangerous hypothermia due to immature skin and they need special incubator to prevent heat loss. Special catheters were inserted through babies umbilical cord for delivering nutrition and monitoring vital parameters”, said Dr Shrinivas Tambe, chief neonatologist, Jupiter Hospital, who treated the child.
“The baby required mechanical ventilation for seven days and then breathing support was provided by CPAP machine for next 70 days. The baby had a condition called Patent Ductus Arteriosuswhich was picked up by a heart scan and successfully treated with medication. Milk feeds were started with 0.5ml every two hours and gradually increased to a full amount by the eighth day. The baby also had an episode of infection which was immediately diagnosed and treated by antibiotics,” added Dr Tambe.
According to Dr Tambe, extreme preterm babies are at high-risk to develop infection, bleeding in the brain, ROP (abnormal development of blood vessels in the retina), Necrotising Enterocolitis (intestinal disorder), PDA (heart problem), and chronic lung disease.
The child was discharged after 100 days in the neonatal ICU and weighed 2kg at the time of discharge, said the doctors. Currently the child is at home, gaining weight and showing signs of normal development.
