How long did your 32/33 week preemie stay in the hospital?

Question

I'm concerned about pre-term labor as I am 32 weeks and have a history of pre-term labor. If you gave birth to a preemie at 32 or 33 weeks can you please tell me about how long your babie's hospital stay was and any complications that were faced? Thanks. I had a 34 and 35 week'er with no problems but this is the earliest I have had these pre-term labor signs.

Answer 1

My son will be 7 years old this June, but he was born at 31 weeks. Preterm labor actually started at the end of 28 weeks, and was able to be stopped with a four day stay in the hospital and a magnesium drip until the end of 29 weeks when the contractions started again, but stopped the same way. I was given steroids to improve his lungs in case he didn't make it to full term and put on bed rest. It was much better that he was born at 31 weeks than 28, but he still had to stay in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) ward of the hosptial for a month. He was born at 4 pounds, 3 ounces and went down to 3 pounds, 12 ounces. He left the hospital at 5 pounds. He had a feeding tube for a few weeks, but my husband and I were able to try bottle feeding him during that time. He wasn't able to breast feed at all (I did try, but he couldn't get the hang of it, so I pumped and gave him the bottles). He was jaundiced for a few days and had to have the biliruben lights put in his incubator. He would also forget to breathe and was put on caffeine, which would stimulate his brain to remember. When he left the hospital, he came home with an apenic monitor to let us know when he would stop breathing. That lasted a few weeks. When he was home, he would projectile vomit a half hour after every feeding and began losing weight. At one and a half months old, he was diagnosed with pyloric stenosis, a problem common in premie boys where the muscle from the esophogas to the stomach is too small causing projectile vomiting. He had surgery to fix it at two months old. He had to have special visits at home to check his motor and developmental skills until he was two to make sure everything was on schedule. Now he's perfectly healthy, aside from the seasonal asthma that he inherited from my husband. He's also one of the top students in his first grade class, but has to go to the school's speech therapy lessons once a week for his "sh" and "l" sounds. The later the baby's born, the better off they are, so hopefully with some bed rest, you can hold off for a few more weeks. My doctor said it's more likely the one I'm pregnant with now will also be early, possibly even earlier than my son, but the goal for me is 32 weeks. That's what doctor's seem to think is the best time for a premie, when everything's fully developed. Good luck to you, and I hope everything works out fine.

Answer 2

33 Week Preemie

Answer 3

32 Week Preemie

Answer 4

My 25 week preemie went home the day after her due date but she had a lot of breathing problems to work through. With no breathing problems, your little guy could be home in another 2-4 weeks or may need to stay in the hospital until closer to his due date. Ask his doctors and nurses tons of questions to get a better idea.

Answer 5

Typically a preemie will stay in the hospital for the amount of time that would have made him full term, for example a 32/33 week preemie, if faced with problems, would stay 3-4 weeks when he would have been due at full term of 36-38 weeks.

Best of luck to you and your little one.

Answer 6

I had my baby at 33 weeks. I was in the hospital for 4 days while they tried to stop my labor. Meanwhile they gave me steriod shots to help the baby's lungs mature and prevent cerebral palsy. She stayed in the NICU for 9 days. During that time she had a feeding tube, was on a heart and respirations monitor, and had a few episodes where she would forget to breathe and her heart rate dropped very low. She came home on a heart monitor, which she still has...(she's almost 3 months old now). She was also given caffeine to stimulate her brain and help her to remember to breathe. She was taken off the caffeine at her 2 month appointment. I'm happy to report that she is doing great now, but I would never wish the experience on anyone! It is so tough to miss out on those first precious moments with your baby! It took weeks to bond with her and emotionally, it's very draining, especially if you have other children to care for. The outcome of your baby, if born early depends largely on its sex, weight, how well you have taken care of yourself, and that steroid shot really helps too...my baby never needed oxygen. Anyway, do your best to make sure your baby's in as long as possible!!!

Answer 7

My son was 31 weeks, he was fine medically. It took him a while to get the suck/swallow/breathe pattern down. He styaed in the hospital for 4 weeks because he had to be tube feed until he got everything down pat.

Answer 8

i am in the same boat as you are well kinda but anyways my doc said if i delivered it would be in the hospital for good 2 months your in my prayers