Infancy Weight at Birth
Thursday, January 8th, 2009Madeline was delivered by emergency caesarean section, but since she had spent only 27 weeks instead of the normal 36 to 40 weeks in the womb, she weighs less than a point a butter tiny 9.9 ounces. The doctor could hold her in the palm of one hand. Premature infants do not usually survive if they weigh less than a pound or are born before 24 weeks Madeline was fully formed and is the smallest newborn ever to have survived.
Madeline spends her first months in intensive care, where all her bodily function was carefully monitored. She also battled two bouts of pneumonia and had surgery for an eye problem. When she finally went home at the end of four months, she had to be given oxygen four times a day to aid her tiny lungs. The doctors told the parents that they would just have to wait and hope because no one knew whether Madeline would make it.
The Parent did wait and hope. And Madeline grew into a spunky child, who at 2 years of age weighed relatively enormous 12 pounds, 10 ounces. At her mental development appeared normal, and she had spoken her first worlds, including a loud “out”, when she wanted to leave her crib, Madeline’s parents have been so pleased about her progress that each day seems like a miracle to them.