Chances of survival for a micro preemie?

Question

My niece is 23.5 weeks pregnant with a boy. She has a heart condition and wasn't supposed to get pregnant to begin with. She has already had 2 strokes and 3 open heart surgeries. When she found out she was pregnant, she opted to try to have the baby over getting an abortion. Two days ago she began to bleed heavily and went into the hospital where they found a large blood clot. She has been bleeding since then and has been in critical condition. They have been afraid that the blood clot would dislodge and cause a stroke. They finally got her stable enough to give her a blood transfusion and transport her to a hospital that has the equipment to treat her and the baby. They are going to take the baby and give her a complete hystorectomy. I have read some on micro preemies and I know that at 23 weeks the baby has a chance to survive. All the scans right now show the baby in good condition. Does anyone know anything about a micro preemies survival rates and quality of life after birth?

The latest word is that They survived the Careflight to the hospital with the specialists. They immediately began working with her. They are focusing more on saving my niece right now than anything. They are going to wait as long as possible to take the baby. She is 25 and 5. They want to wait 2 more days if she stays stable enough. Unfortunately they are only going hour by hour. Both of their lives are very touch and go right now. Thanks for all the kind words.

To my above details, I meant 23 and 5 not 25 and 5.

For those who care, I will update as I find out. the specialists have evaluated her. She is in stable condition now and is doing better than they thought. They said she will be hospitalized the rest of her pregnancy but they may not have to take the baby right away after all. They won't let her go too long but the goal is 32 weeks now instead of 24. The blood clot is still there but it is breaking apart slowly and not in large chunks that would set up a stroke. That is still a danger though. She is getting another blood transfusion. The babies organs look good.

The blood clot is alsmost completely dissoved and she has stopped beeding. They gave her another transfusion but now her blood count is good. The baby is still doing well, Thanks for everyone prayers!

Answer 1

First, I hope you'll keep us all posted as I've saved this to my list.

My girlfriend had her son at 24 weeks. So, it is possible. Her pregnancy was also wrought with many complications and at 24 weeks she gave birth after being on bedrest for nearly a month.

He was born a little over a pound and now is three and not yet 20 pounds. He's also a lot shorter. His size is comparable to my 10 month old. But, developmentally he's right on par. He was a few month behind, but just shot up to his age group.

He has no other complications than his size.

I'm keeping her and the baby in my prayers! I know this is hard for you!!

God Bless.

Answer 2

My cousin had a baby at 24 or 25wks due to major complications which meant she went into really early labour. Her baby boy was tiny! And it was heartbreaking watching him day in and day out - this poor wee thing in an incubator - made her (and i as i stayed in the hospital with her for the first month for moral support) feel so very helpless. But baby was a fighter - he was in hospital for about 5 months but continued to fight and is now 8 years old.

Its not easy (and this from someone who wasn't even the mother) but it is possible. Her little boy does have some learning disabilities however he is a darling boy who is adored by the whole family. He needs special care to a certain degree and his first words were a long time coming but now he is talking - not as an 8y/o - he is probably on par with a 5 y/o but the doctors said his mentality wouldn't go past a baby's and he probably wouldn't talk .... just goes to show doctors don't know everything.

He goes to school and loves to learn new things and he is especially creative. His art is amazing.

He will always need some help to a certain degree - i don't think he would ever be self sufficient enough to be on his own - but you never know what may happen between now and then.

I hope all works out for your niece and her baby. Best of luck to you all.

Answer 3

My wife was at risk for an early birth of our twins and was hospitalized at 20 weeks, so we learned all the numbers.

Unfortunately, at 23 weeks, the survival rate is very low, around 16%. And there is also a large possibility of the baby having problems since most of the baby is not fully developed yet (eyes, ears, brain, lung). For this reason, he would likely go into the NICU for at least 13 weeks (when he would be 36 weeks) and likely longer.

We were told that they probably wouldn't do anything at 22 weeks, but survival rate increased significantly at 24 weeks and our doctors felt obligated to at least try. Unfortunately, 23 is in that grey area where it comes down to a decision between the parents and doctors.

If it helps, we had decided to do everything possible after 22 weeks. Fortunately for us, our babies held on until 37 weeks when it wasn't an issue anymore.

Another option is to see if the doctors think it is safe enough to wait the extra few days until 24 weeks when survival rates jump to around 44%. There will still be a long NICU stay and probably some quality of life issues still though.

Good luck to you, your niece and your family. This isn't an easy decision.

Answer 4

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Answer 5

My youngest brother was born at 24 weeks. He weighed 1lb 14 oz.(this was in 1991). He had to stay at the NICU at Shands and was constantly monitored , there were nights when they thought he wouldnt make it, but he did. The doctors said that one of the biggest things that contribute to a babies survival at that age is to have someone there, to have someone to touch them and talk to them and generally just keep them stimulated. This helps them to eat better and get stronger and fight off infection better. It will be hard, but the baby has better than 50% chance. As far as complications, my brother had none. The most common one though is being a little developmentally delayed. IE, the baby will be three months behind in its milestones because it wasnt supposed to be born for three months.

Answer 6

My son was 2lbs. 7 oz and 14 in. long when he was born. He is 10 yrs. old now and you would never be able to tell he was a premmie. There was some babies in the NICU that were smaller than my son and I would like to tell you that everything turned out great for them, but after a month my son was 3lbs. 6oz and they let us go home. He didn't need a ventilator or heart monitor. He was able to keep his temp regulated and he came off the feeding tube. He was thriving.. My prayers are with you and Adelyne..

Answer 7

i have heard that most babbies born this early have some sort of problems their whole life, my friend had her baby at 26 weeks and the baby has alot of things wrong with her eyes, she can barely see and has worn glasses since she was like a year or so old. the baby stayed in the hospital for a few months

Answer 8

I don't know anythign about micro premies, but I will keep your family in my thoughts and prayers. The only thing I know to tell you do is research as much as you can on the internet and see if you can find a support group online that you could ask questions.

Answer 9

Unfortunately, I don't know any statistics for this situation. I just felt compelled to respond.

I do wish your niece and her baby the absolute best of luck. Your niece is lucky to have a caring uncle.

I will keep them in my thoughts.

Answer 10

Well for one pray and pray and pray and don't stop praying until that baby is home. The teacher of my parenting classes I took had her first son at 25 weeks and he's alive now 30+ years old. I'm sure they will give your neice a shot t make the lung develope quickly and the baby will be fine. You have to just give this to God and trust in him please please pray and trust that God can move mountains. Only God can help your neices baby now. I really hope and pray that th baby makes it. Thats the worst feeling ever to loose a baby you birthed. It happened to my best friend and she just fell apart.

May God be with you.