All preemies have more than their share of obstacles to overcome, but the smaller and more premature a baby is, the more they must fight to survive. Harley Gulliksen’s parents know this better than most.
It is a world record for sure. Twins, Amy and Katie were born to mom Maria Jones-Elliott not few minutes or few hours apart but a full 87 days apart! Doctors say it is likely the first of its kind incident in Irish medical history.
Countless studies have highlighted the many benefits of music therapy. Those suffering from depression may improve their mood. An insomniac may finally start to sleep better at night. An autistic child’s meltdown may be diffused. A cerebral palsy patient may find a way to connect with the outside world.
During her 20th week of pregnancy, Savannah Perry, learned that her daughter had a cyst on the left lung. After further examination, doctors determined that Lake wouldn’t be able to breathe once she was born.
In a world-first the damaged lungs of preemies could be repaired after they are born by stem-cell-like treatment pioneered at Melbourne’s Monash Institute of Medical Research.
Babies that are born prematurely face many potential complications. One of those possible complications includes blindness caused by a condition known as retinopathy of prematurity(ROP). Caused by vascular issues in the eyes, this condition was previously thought to have something to do with the neonatal care often given to premature infants.
Health care professionals have cautioned parents on the use of iron supplements for infants, saying that too much iron can stunt growth. Previous studies have supported the use of these supplements in premature or very low birth-weight babies because they are not able to store up as much iron as infants born at term, but until now, there haven’t been any studies conducted on babies falling just below normal weight or term.
Being born prematurely carries a number of risks, many of which could last a lifetime. New research, conducted by Dr. Julia Pitcher and Dr. Michael Ridding from the University of Adelaide’s Robinson Institute has found yet another possible long-term complication: brain development problems could directly affect memory and learning abilities into the teenage years, and possibly for the duration of life.
In parts of the world where costly incubators and medical technology is still not available to save precious preemies, a simple infant sleeping bag developed by an organization is helping save these lives in a cost effective manner.
Sleep apnea isn’t good for anyone, but a new study says it may be even riskier for a pregnant woman and her unborn child.
Last May, the FDA issued a warning advisory regarding the use of a thickening agent, SimplyThick. Originally, the warning was only for premature infants, but the FDA has now extended that warning to all infants after seven babies died.
According to the CDC, an estimated 10,000 babies are born with cerebral palsy each year. As defined by the National Institutes of Health, cerebral palsy is a disease that is caused by brain injury before, during or after birth. It is most easily classified by the accompanying neuromuscular problems that can affect all or part of the body, and can range in severity from mild to extremely severe.
Last Thursday, a team of more than 50 medics at UT Southwestern Medical Center were busy with a special delivery. They successfully welcomed into the world quintuplets – three boys and two girls born to missionary couple Carrie and Gavin Jones.
