preemies

16 Stories

'Ray of Hope': World's Smallest Baby at Birth Goes Home

Kwek Yu Xuan was just 7.47 oz. when born. A year later, she's a healthy 14 pounds.

(Newser) - When Kwek Yu Xuan was born in early June 2020, four months early, the tiny newborn was about 9.5 inches long and weighed just 7.47 ounces—about how much an apple weighs, making her the smallest baby ever born, per the BBC . Yu Xuan's mother, who had...

Hospital Warns of Waterborne Bacteria After 3 Infants Die

5 babies have recovered or are recovering at Pennsylvania's Geisinger Medical Center

(Newser) - A Pennsylvania hospital is turning away premature babies after three contracted pseudomonas infection and died. Eight premature babies, all born at less than 27 weeks of gestation, fell ill at Danville's Geisinger Medical Center as a result of the waterborne bacteria discovered in July, reports CNN . Four were "...

He Was 9.45 Ounces at Birth and Survived
World's Tiniest
Baby Boy Survives
Feb 27, 2019 10:10 AM CST

World's Tiniest Baby Boy Survives

Born at 9.45 ounces in August, he was discharged last Wednesday

(Newser) - Doctors opted for an emergency cesarean section at 24 weeks' gestation after discovering the fetus wasn't gaining weight. The baby boy weighed 9.45 ounces at his August birth—and has survived, making him the smallest baby boy ever to do so. The BBC reports the baby was discharged...

Mom on Stranger's Kind Act: 'I Cried My Way Up the Aisle'

Good Samaritan offered her his first-class seat when he saw her with baby, oxygen tank on flight

(Newser) - To the passenger who was in seat 2D on American Airlines Flight 588 on Thursday, America applauds you. As does Kelsey Zwick, a young mom on that same flight with her 11-month-old daughter, Lucy, headed from Orlando to Philly to receive treatment for the baby's chronic lung disease. USA ...

Being Born Unable to Breathe Isn't a Death Sentence Anymore

Tracing the advances of neonatal medicine through the story of Owen

(Newser) - When baby Owen was born in November, "he couldn't breathe." It wasn't a fleeting problem. Delivered at about 24 weeks and weighing just 1.4 pounds, the preemie had a rash of additional issues: He was at risk of developing sepsis, had a heart valve that...

I Gave Birth to Sick Twins, Lost My House, My Bed, My Dignity
I Gave Birth to Sick Twins, Lost
My House, My Bed, My Dignity
in case you missed it
Jan 20, 2018 12:54 PM CST

I Gave Birth to Sick Twins, Lost My House, My Bed, My Dignity

Jen Sinconis describes her experience with medical debt for the 'Guardian'

(Newser) - In an essay for the Guardian , Jen Sinconis pens a sort of love letter to two ObamaCare tenets: a ban on lifetime limits on most benefits and on denying people insurance due to pre-existing conditions. Sinconis had access to neither when she had her twin boys 11 years ago. The...

'ICU Grandpa' Gets Puked On, Peed On, Loves Every Minute

Meet David Deutchman, aka 'ICU Grandpa,' who cuddles preemies at Atlanta hospital

(Newser) - You'll probably wish David Deutchman were your grandpa after reading about him, but then that would mean all of the tiny babies at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta would miss out. People reports on the 82-year-old's efforts at the Georgia hospital, where for the past 12 years the...

Micro Premies Might Be More Likely to Survive in 'Bio Bag'

Works by placing babies on edge of viability back into womb-like environment

(Newser) - If placing super premature babies into fluid-filled bags sounds inhumane, consider that they are currently hooked up to invasive machines in sterile compartments with a survival rate around 50%, with many going on to struggle to do basic things like see, hear, walk, and talk. Researchers testing a new "...

Couple's Identical Twins Could Be Born Months Apart

Link was born 23 weeks into his mother's pregnancy, with Logan still in utero

(Newser) - Just 23 weeks into Holli Gorveatt's pregnancy, she gave birth to Link, who weighed in at 1 pound 2 ounces and, right on the edge of viability, stands a 10% chance of normal development. Just as astounding is that Link has an identical twin brother Logan who remains in...

Study May Raise Pressure to Treat Younger Preemies

Survey finds that those at 22 weeks can survive

(Newser) - A new survey of hospital practices may make it more common for doctors to actively treat a baby born at 22 weeks, at least a week younger than the generally accepted standard for viability, reports the New York Times . The study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that...

Biggest Killer of Kids Under 5: Premature Birth
Biggest Killer of Kids
Under 5: Premature Birth
study says
Nov 17, 2014 6:52 AM CST

Biggest Killer of Kids Under 5: Premature Birth

But what exactly triggers preterm birth remains a mystery

(Newser) - Each day, more than 3,000 children under age 5 die from preterm birth complications—meaning that, for the first time ever, premature birth is the biggest killer of young children around the globe. A new study in the Lancet finds that of the 1.1 million such deaths in...

15M Preemies Born Every Year
In US, 1 in 8 Births
Are Premature
May 2, 2012 6:32 PM CDT

In US, 1 in 8 Births Are Premature

Worldwide, about 1M too-soon babies die each year

(Newser) - About 15 million premature babies are born every year—more than 1 in 10 of the world's births and a bigger problem than previously believed, according to the first country-by-country estimates of this obstetric epidemic. The startling toll: 1.1 million of these fragile newborns die as a result,...

10% of Babies Are Premature, Taxing World's Health System

Of 13 million preemies, 1 million die before surviving 1 month

(Newser) - Nearly 10% of babies born each year worldwide arrive prematurely, and the stress of caring for them "is exacting a huge toll emotionally, physically and financially on families, medical systems and economies," the March of Dimes said today. Some 13 million babies are preemies, and more than 1...

Sex a Factor in Preemie Survival

Gender, birth weight increase odds for newborns

(Newser) - Gestational age is not the only factor determining odds of a very premature baby's survival, a study finds. Being female, receiving lung-maturing steroids before birth, an extra 3½ ounces of weight and being a single birth all help as much as an extra week of pregnancy, the AP reports. The...

Lifelong Issues Plague Preemies
 Lifelong Issues Plague Preemies 
Mar 26, 2008 7:48 AM CDT

Lifelong Issues Plague Preemies

Fewer graduate high school, have children

(Newser) - More babies are surviving premature birth than ever before, but new research has found they suffer lifelong problems. Preemies face health challenges into adulthood and are less likely to graduate from high school or to have children of their own, reports USA Today. Those who do have children are more...

Hospitals Build 'Womb Rooms' for Preemies

Environments are designed to replicate qualities of the womb

(Newser) - With preterm births soaring—and tinier preemies surviving—many hospitals are redesigning their neonatal units to provide environments closer to those babies experience in utero, the New York Times reports. The new rooms are darker and quieter, and provide space for skin-to-skin contact with parents (not to speak of places...

16 Stories