Sneha (name changed) is a 27-week premature baby girl who weighed only 620 grams at birth. Her mother had a rare medical condition called didelphys uterus or double uterus. Despite the odds, the doctors at Cloudnine Hospital in Panchkula managed to save her life. Sneha required respiratory and cardiac support at birth due to her immature lungs, heart, and gut. The chances of such a baby surviving are less than 10 in 1000 babies, with a survival rate of 1 in 100 babies.
Baby was given mechanical ventilation within a minute of birth
Sneha was given mechanical ventilation within a minute of birth, and poor cardiac contractility caused shock in the baby. She was put on a ventilator and was provided with incubator care that simulated the womb until she was six weeks old. She was initially fed expressed breast milk through tube feeds, and once she was off oxygen after a month of birth, she started accepting feeds orally. She was weaned off to CPAP (a mechanism to support spontaneous breathing) support for a few weeks. The doctors supplied parenteral nutrition to support her growth and simultaneously expressed breast milk. She responded positively to the treatment and was discharged from the hospital on April 15, weighing 1.6 kilograms.
Dr. Sorabh Goel, Consultant Neonatologist and Pediatrician, along with Dr. Sahil Bansal, treating and admitting consultant neonatologist and pediatrician, supported an excellent team of Nurses in managing Sneha’s treatment and care. The baby was sent home in a neurologically intact state before completing 36 weeks and weighed 1.6 kg. Presently, Sneha weighs over 1800 grams and is accepting feeds from her mother and growing well.
Dr. Goel explained that low birth weight is due to various reasons, from the mother being undernourished to being ill during pregnancy, and in certain cases, it can be genetic. He added that South Asia has the highest incidence of low birth weight, with one in four newborns weighing less than 2,500 grams.
Dr. Sahil Bansal said that survival of babies born extremely premature with a birth weight of less than 700 grams is less than 2% in India. Sneha’s case is unique and rare because she was the tiniest and lightest but not the weakest and fought all the odds. She had diseases like Intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH), respiratory distress syndrome (RDS), Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), which are all life-threatening illnesses almost exclusively affecting neonates, with a mortality rate as high as 50%. The infant also had sepsis (infection), retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and responded well to treatment to unite with her parents.
“Miracle Baby: 620-gram Premature Infant Survives and Thrives After 57 Days in NICU”
Doctors and nurses at Cloudnine Hospital in Panchkula provided her with excellent care
Dr. Bansal added that the baby girl’s story is inspiring and makes us believe that everything is possible. With timely interventions and parents’ trust in their team, they were able to save the baby’s life. The infant was discharged after 57 days of NICU stay at a weight of 1.6 kg. On follow-up, the infant had excellent growth and weight gain.
Sneha’s case shows that even the tiniest and lightest babies can survive if they receive proper care and timely interventions. The doctors and nurses at Cloudnine Hospital in Panchkula provided her with excellent care, and Sneha is now growing well with her family.
