27 weeks with perforated bowel

Natalie_may

My baby "b" Hunter was taken in for surgery at 530 this morning. Since he hasn't had a bowel movement since birth they did an x-Ray and found air in his belly. The drs can't tell us much at the moment as they are unsure what caused it / the condition of his bowel and won't know until they are in there. My little boy is so brave and not fussy and I know he is a fighter and will be just fine, I was just wondering if anyone else had been through this or any other early surgery and could let me know what to expect in terms of recovery and emotions.

ESM354

My DS had a minor heart surgery to close his PDA duct when he was really little.  He was born at almost 27 weeks and had the surgery a few weeks later.  We were super emotional about it just knowing that he was so little and having sort of a heart surgery.  He has a scar on his side about 2 1/2 inches long.  The surgery went pretty quickly and he did great!! He recovered quickly from it- much quicker than we thought he would.  Suprisingly he didn't seem to be recovering really- he seemed just fine, the surgery helped him get better so his lungs could work efficiently.  We were pleasantly suprised by how it all went.  The nurses in the nicu did a great job giving him special love after his surgery too.  They made sure he was extra comfortable and also they gave him tylenol for the pain. Good luck with everything!! Soon it will be a distant memory for you.

lemen99

I don't have any experience here, but I wanted to send some T&P!

beyoga

My son was born at 24 weeks.  Although we have not had to have surgery he has had some horrible infections.  He had the scalded skin where his skin was like that of a burn victim and a uti/pseudomonas infection.  He is just fine now.  These babies are very resilient.  Sending T & P's.

Natalie_may

Thanks ladies! Hunter's surgery went well, they had to remove 2 inches of bowel but it will not have long-term nutritional consequences. He has an ostomy and will need another procedure once he hits 6 lbs to put him back together. I'm hoping that he recovers well and doesn't need anything else for some time. I know there must be a reason we were given early arrivals but I am struggling to figure out what it is. Trying to stay positive is challenging enough with full term babies let alone such little ones.

ESM354

Glad to hear that things went well.  Good luck with everything!  Hang in there.

 

angelaphora

my son went through the same thing- born at 27 weeks- air was discovered in his bowel second day of life- they did try the non surgical method and it worked for about a day- he had a bowel movement and then on Christmas eve- he once again had air in his tummy and had surgery to repair the tare.  I am not sure if they had to remove any bowel but due to his tare being small all the surgeon did was repair it and sewed him up.  we did have several ups and downs after his surgery due to him developing an infection that a source was never found - he even had a spinal tap to test for meningitis.  my little guy is now a healthy 5 amd 1/2 month old- adjusted almost 3 mths.  He is over 24+ inchs long and over 12 pds.  They ended up finding out why he was so early - i went into preterm labor at 24 weeks with a bulging bag of water and the night he was born apparently i had developed acute chorioamnionitis- which may have also caused my son to be so sick early on.