This story of premature baby Nirvaan is going to warm your heart.
Born at 22 weeks and weighing just about 620 gms, he was put in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for four months. The doctors involved with his delivery were skeptical of his survival because he is India’s most premature baby ever seen.
But showing a true fighter spirit, this little bub came out a winner.
Nirvaan is now all of 3.8 kgs!
The good news is that he is now all of 3.8 kgs plus at 40 weeks and reportedly ready to be discharged from the Surya Hospital in Mumbai.
Nirvaan’s story is especially worth sharing because reports suggest that while India tops the list in premature births, the survival rate of premies is as low as 0.5 percent.
And given his state, there was a likely possibility that he would not have survived.
Sharing the news about taking her son home for the first time since his birth, Nirvaan’s mother Retika, 34, told a daily, “Despite adverse probabilities and statistics, I never had a negative vibe about him. I knew he will emerge as a winner.”
The parents also zeroed down on his unique name because of their circumstances.
“A lot of thought was put behind his name Nirvaan, which means ultimate bliss, and that’s what he is for us,” said Retika.
Nirvaan’s journey started through normal delivery!
Incidentally, Nirvaan’s journey did not have a dramatic start.
His mother Retika experienced contractions at 20 weeks and was rushed to a local doctor, who then called Dr Sejal Desai, obstetrician and gynaecologist.
“When I heard about the patient, I told the doctor to administer a steroid injection to slow down the mother’s contractions and immediately bring her to the hospital,” Dr Desia told Hindustan Times.
Image courtesy: The Hindu | Nirvaan with a nurse
Soon after his normal delivery, he was rushed to the NICU at Surya Hospital in Mumbai, and placed in the incubator. Since he was premature, he was born with extremely underdeveloped organs.
At the NICU, Nirvaan was looked after by 50 nurses and 14 doctors round the clock.
This one was a fighter!
“He spent six weeks on a ventilator and another six weeks on a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure machine. He also needed steroids for a month (to reduce lung inflammation and bring him off respiratory aids), antibiotics and insulin therapy (to handle rising sugar levels from the steroid treatment), multiple blood transfusions, laser treatment (he had developed retinopathy),” reported The Hindu.
Dr. Haribalakrishna Balasubramanian, neonatologist, told the daily, “For the first six weeks, we could not say anything about the outcome. We had found very limited evidence worldwide about the survival rate of such babies. But this one was a fighter.”
The parents spent reportedly to about Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh on keeping Nirvaan at the NICU. But their persistence bore fruit, as Nirvaan is now going home with a strong heart, bones and brain.
Nirvaan’s father told the daily, “It was expensive. Those who have the resources should definitely give their babies a chance.”
And he is right.
Keeping a baby in NICU does mean spending money, but it is all worth a shot for your baby. However, if you’re wondering about the whys and hows of an NICU, here are some things you need to know as quoted in our previous article.
5 things to know if your baby is in the NICU
Most premies are kept in neonatal intensive care unit or NICU. And while at first the place might scare new parents with its tubes and high-tech nursery, rest assured your baby will come out healthy and stronger once through there.
But here are a few things you must know about an NICU.
- Why opt for NICU? If your baby is born prematurely or suffered complications during delivery or is showing any signs of health issues during the first few days of birth, they will be kept in NICU based on the doctor’s recommendations.
- What equipment will they attach to my baby? This depends on the health problem your baby may have. However, there are five primary equipments used in an NICU such as monitors and alarms to respond to the baby’s needs immediately, isolettes and warmers to monitor the baby’s body temperature, phototherapy machines to treat jaundice and respiratory equipments as well as machines and tubes to be used as IVs.
- Who will take care of my baby? There are specialised personnels who care for the babies in the NICU and these include neonatal nurse practitioner, nurses on shifts, a neonatologist, a respiratory therapist and a nutritionist among others. Basically, there are a lot of specialists who are responsible for your baby in the NICU.
- What questions to ask the specialists? As concerned parents you would certainly have a lot of questions, but what you need to know on an immediate basis is- what is the problem, when can you take your baby home, types of tests done on your baby, who will help your baby, when can you help the baby and most importantly, who will take you through the entire process.
- What should I expect at the NICU? It may look scary at first, but once your baby is settled, it is in this place that he/she will receive tailor-made care and will recuperate towards better health and a stronger body.
Read: All you should know about taking care of your premature baby
(All images for representational purposes only | Courtesy: Pixabay)
