Posted on 02/05/2004 3:34:41 PM PST by Indy Pendance
Zoe Koz weighed no more than a can of soup when she was born, and was so small she fit in the palm of her doctor's hand.
But the tiny newborn was strong enough to surprise the physicians who delivered her by Caesarean section Jan. 6.
"When I delivered her, she kicked me,'' said Dr. Julie Jensen, the obstetrician who presided over Zoe's birth. "She's feisty.''
| WORLD'S TINIEST BABIES
Two of the 10 smallest babies ever to survive were born in the Chicago suburbs. Here's where and when the 10 tiniest surviving infants were born, according to a registry kept by the University of Iowa medical school:
1. 1989, Madeline Mann, Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, 280 grams (9.88 ounces), 26 weeks gestation.
|
Born weighing a minuscule 10.8 ounces and measuring only 9-1/2 inches long, she's also one of the tiniest babies ever to survive.
Her doctors at Edward Hospital in west suburban Naperville believe she's the third-smallest surviving baby born in the United States and the ninth- smallest in the world.
"You really can't comprehend her until you see her,'' said her mom, Tammy Koz of Plainfield. "She's a perfect little baby. She's just a lot tinier.''
The little girl still has big challenges ahead of her, although she's been making good progress since her birth. Now almost a month old, her weight has climbed to 17 ounces, and at times she has breathed without the help of a respirator. It likely will be many months before she's large enough to leave the hospital and doctors are juggling a host of problems, including breathing difficulties, that still threaten her health.
"We don't really know her long-term outcome,'' said Dr. Bob Covert, a neonatologist treating Zoe, who was born three months premature.
Her parents are trying to remain optimistic that their first-born child -- whose odds of surviving birth were estimated at only 20 percent to 30 percent -- will overcome the obstacles she faces.
"She's a fighter; she's been a fighter since Day 1,'' said her dad, Eric Koz, 26. "I feel confident Zoe will go home.''
Her parents suspected that having children would be difficult. Tammy, 25, suffers from lupus, an auto-immune disorder that can complicate pregnancies.
Doctors believe Tammy's lupus impaired the development of her placenta, which reduced the flow of blood to Zoe and slowed her growth. Her parents learned of the problem when Tammy underwent an ultrasound test at 20 weeks. Doctors said the baby wasn't growing normally.
At 24 weeks, just before Christmas, doctors gave the couple an agonizing choice: Deliver the child immediately, even though her odds of surviving were virtually nil, or gamble that she could survive in the womb for a few more desperately needed weeks.
Tammy and Eric decided to wait and hope that Zoe would survive long enough for her organs to mature to give her a better chance of surviving. They gained a precious 20 days before doctors concluded Zoe had to be delivered or die. "It was torture, it was the worst three weeks of my life,'' Tammy said.
Doctors estimated Zoe would weigh at least 13 ounces when she was born. Her parents, knowing every ounce could make a difference, hoped the estimates might be low by an ounce or two.
Eric and Tammy were stunned when doctors in the delivery room announced Zoe's weight at less than 11 ounces.
"I just about collapsed,'' Eric said, adding he ended up being ushered out of the delivery room in a wheelchair because he was so upset. "I was in the recovery room before her.''
Zoe was so small when she was born that even medical equipment used to treat premature infants was sometimes too big. Her first diapers "came up to her chest,'' Eric said, adding that when he slipped his wedding band on her arm, it slid to her shoulder.
An intravenous line used to delivers nutrients to her, for example, is thinner than a strand of vermicelli pasta, doctors say.
But Zoe is progressing. She receives milk dripped through a tube into her stomach.
The amount of milk she can digest has grown more than tenfold as her digestive system develops. Although she uses a respirator, it's to assist her breathing so she doesn't wear herself out.
She's already showing flashes of a strong, prickly personality, her dad said proudly.
"She doesn't like being moved around; she fusses,'' Eric said of his daughter, whose name is a Greek word meaning "life.''
It's not clear when Zoe might be able to go home.
Dr. Edward Bell, a neonatologist at the University of Iowa, said the tiniest preemies typically are hospitalized for three to eight months, with medical costs generally running into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The babies who survive generally remain smaller than other children their age.
So few babies born weighing less than a pound survive that it's difficult to offer a prediction, experts said, although at least two other Chicago area children born under that benchmark weight have survived and are doing well.
My third baby, and second daughter, checked in at a relatively hefty 6lb 13oz just two weeks ago. She (Rylie Jane) was our fattest.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
