wondering

itsmyangel · July 2010

I am hoping to keep this lo cooking much longer...but am starting to just look around and see what his chances are if he were born..here's the story:

I was diagnosed at 20 weeks with irritable ute. i went in to L+D this past thursday because the BH were getting more painful to the point where i couldn't really walk. Turns out i was contracting every 5 min and my FFN test came back positive. They admitted me, got me on mag, and got my 2 steroid injections in "just in case". The mfm is pretty please that my cervix is still closed at the internal os and length is still 4 despite all the contractions...but i have started at home bed rest.

I'll be 26 weeks tomorrow. We know his gestation right down to the min due to the fact that he is IVF pregnancy....but he is measuring big 2 lbs 3 oz and 27-28 weeks on most of his body parts...that is a plus right?

i guess I'm just looking for some success stories out there just in case this thing happens sooner rather than later Thanks ladies

witt0198 · July 2010

I'm so sorry you're having to go through all of this right now. Yay for closed long cervix though.

Here's a very brief synopsis of DS birth. I went into PTL and was found to be dilated to 2cm at near 23.5 wks. My FFN was positive. Labor was only able to be mostly stopped for 4.5 days. He was delivered at 24 weeks via emergency c-section weighing 1lbs 10oz, he cried 4 times at least before they got him ventilated with apgars of 8 and 10. Spent 89days in NICU.....biggest battle there was a lung bleed, had several other things go on that I'm not going to stress you with now. He came home at 5lbs 10oz before his due date on caffiene, an apnea monitor and oxygen. He ended up with severe vomiting and reflux, a g-tube and failure to thrive. Now he is a healthy active 2 yr old who's caught up in everything and advanced for his age in a lot of things. His g-tube is out and he's eating normally and growing. The only sign I notice of his prematurity still is the fact he still breaths about twice the rate of his peers. Pretty sure it's damage from the ventilator.

That all being said, usually every week makes a big difference, and the statistics for a 26 weeker are a lot better than for a 24 weeker. However, every kid is SO different, and it's impossible to predict what YOUR road would be. It's a great thing that you've gotten the steriods in. They really do make a difference, and I'm convinced it's part of why DS has done so well.

My point being, having a preemie this small/early is definitely hard, and a long road, but they can do GREAT, and there is real reason to hope for good things! If you'd like to hear more of his story or ask me more questions feel free to PM or email me at witt0198@umn.edu.

GL, and best wishes for some successful bedrest for you and LO!

itsmyangel · July 2010

Thanks for your response! Glad to see that your little guys really is doing SOO well!!!! I love to hear success stories as its really nice to have hope.

kkh2002 · July 2010

Sarah was 2lbs 3oz at 27w3d - she was considered a good size for her gestational age as well, though she dropped to 1lb 11oz after birth (due to diuretics given for PDA). She was also born weighing 3/4lb MORE than the u/s estimated just two days before. Add to that the fact that I'd had almost zero amniotic fluid since 23w.

We only spent 2 days on the vent (that surprised EVERYONE given the pPROM) and she was on the canula (varying % of O2) until her approximate due date. We spent 16wks in the NICU - we would have been home closer to her due date, but we all three had H1N1 that delayed us three weeks. And she couldn't go home prior to that because she was still on O2 and we'd not yet received the all clear from her eye doc (her retinas were declared fully mature around her due date).

So, with all that said, Sarah came home on an apnea monitor and reflux meds. That's all. Aside from our regular pedi well baby visits, we've had a couple of issues with MRSA (also from the hospital. Awesome) but that's really it. I expect we'll see colds/crud once she starts daycare later this summer (I've been home all this time), but so far she's done really well. We've been in early intervention since the first of the year, but we've been discharged from PT, and OT has reduced us to once a month. She's meeting her developmental milestones between her actual and adjusted age. She's quite small (even for her adjusted age), but that's to be expected for the first few years and she still has no teeth, but those are both things I can deal with!

I think we're definately a best case scenario especially given the circumstances of Sarah's birth. Here's hoping you do NOT become a regular on this board - best of luck!

ETA: Sarah's APGARS were 2, 5 and 6. Not impressive at all and I'm glad I didn't know what they were until I saw her discharge papers much later.

itsmyangel · July 2010

wow!! Amazing stories from both you ladies!!! I really admire all you and your LOs have had to go through but am so amazed at how well everything has turned out for you guys! Love it!

njdcgirl · July 2010

I'm so sorry you have to worry about this at all! I think you know that Andrew is one day behind your LO, and he came 2 weeks ago. All things considered, he is doing well so far. Although I know we can't call him a success story yet, the fact that he is here with us and doing as good as he is should be encouraging.

Like a pp said, each child is different, and so statistics really may not mean much, but for me they were important when we were in the scary place of knowing we were going to deliver. We were told for Andrew, at 23w5d his chances for survival were 31%. I just checked a preemie book we bought, and for 26 weeks it says survival is 75%. And you know that each day really helps more and more. His size is a plus, as are the steroids shots you've gotten.

I hope that the bed rest lets you cook LO for much longer...I know it sucks, but I don't wish this NICU rollercoaster on anyone! I'll have you all in my thoughts.

TriciaJoy · July 2010

I'm sorry you're going through this and that you are enduring the awful mag. (ugh!)

My son was born at 26w2d due to pre-eclampsia/hellp syndrome. My son was actually very small for his GA, weighing 1 lb 7 oz.

He had a not easy, but not horrible NICU experience. Basically, nothing came easy, but we narrowly missed a lot of the scariest things (NEC, sepsis, brain bleeds etc.)

My son's biggest lasting issues have been feeding related. It's hard to say how much of his was prematurity and how much was the fact that he was born with a diaphragm not connected completely and has had a lot of stomach issues. He actually started out eating great (everyone was really impressed when he latched on and nursed his first time at the breast) but when his stomach issues got worse, his eating tanked and he currently has a G-tube as well.

Because of a lot of his stomach issues, he was behind in a lot of his motor skills for a long time, but he's about to graduate from physical therapy now. Our main focus now is feeding & speech (which are often related.) His speech is a little behind, but not horribly.

Overall, though, he's bright and funny and charming and good natured. The path has not been easy and I do not want to downplay the trauma of the NICU in any way.. but there definitely is hope.

If you want to read through our story, I blogged daily while Robbie was in the NICU. My blog link is in my siggy and he was born on 5/31/08, you can go back to that day and leaf through if you'd like.

SkypekWithoutAC · July 2010

Hey sweetie, I've been following you on SAIF for a while and just wanted to say that I'm really pulling for you. I hope your LO stays in for a good bit longer!!!

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