Posted on 03/05/2005 3:19:49 AM PST by beaversmom
MOBILE, Ala. - A medical team at the University of South Alabama's Children's & Women's Hospital have closely monitored the progress of a newborn who weighed only 10 ounces at birth on Feb. 15.
His parents, Phillip and Monica Whitlock, said tiny Malachi Andreas Whitlock is so far holding his own.
"I feel he's got 100 percent chance of survival," his father said.
They said they chose the name Malachi because it's one of the smallest books of the Bible, and Malachi means "messenger of God."
"He's so small, and he's sent a message to us of what love is," the father said.
Dr. Fabien Eyal, the director of USA's neonatal intensive care unit, said, "Everybody's pulling for him, but we know they're in for a very tough time."
Monica Whitlock had an emergency cesarean section after developing high blood pressure.
Malachi, at 10 ounces, weighed about 290 grams at birth. Most babies placed in the unit, Eyal said, weigh around 400 grams. One baby, born at 350 grams, did survive and went home this week.
Eyal attributed the "incredibly low birth weight" to the fact that Malachi stopped growing before his birth. He put Malachi's actual development at 20 weeks at the time of birth.
The normal gestation period is 40 weeks.
Eyal said babies born at 22 to 24 weeks are at "the limit of viability."
Would it be possible to correct my typos in the title?
Should be "Defying" and "Odds". Sorry about that.
Democrat response: "Quick! suck the baby's brains out before it is too late."
They must really hate these stories about babies being able to survive at younger and younger gestation.
BABIES are SO CUTE ! (Well most of them anyways! )
I hope he has no long term health effects, hopefully everything goes smooth.
Clearly, the GE 3-D ultrasound pictures have them rattled. The little babies that they claim feel no pain when their limbs get ripped off, can be seen kicking, feeling their own face and sucking their thumb at 3 months.
Must be the second or third smallest.
My youngest neice was born 2 months early and 2 pounds - and she's a viable wonderful child today.
I won't get in the argument of abortion - but the medical community has provided ways of preventing birth for years, and there is of course the dimwit dreading "no sex" that helps out too.
This child is loved and wanted and will thrive under that. Thank you Beversmom for posting it. I missed it when I read my local paper, The Ledger-Enquirer, yesterday on the web.
I'm a first time parent with a 2yr old. For me, hearing and seeing that pulsing blip. "That's the heart." I cried with joy! It solidified my position like a rock to advocate life.
ping.
FYI..this Sunday night on National Geographic, there's a program showing the new 4D ultrasound pics of the fetus...well worth watching..
ping
NICU graduate bump
Those parents and baby Malachi are in for a long fight. Prayers that they make it. It can be done. Having a child fighting for his or her life in NICU teaches parents much about life, love and themselves.
make that preemie!
Mariabush, I agree with you. My daughter was in there for two months. Women would gain a greater appreciation for how fragile life is. They also would learn what angels and professionals the NICU staff are. They are amazing.
Yes...it's a 2 hour program. The Tiggywinkle's are watching.
regards, and have a great weekend..
Same here...what struck me was the ferocity of that little heartbeat.
What also stuck me was how my second boy jammed his hand in his mouth 5 seconds after passing out of Mommy. He's 5 months old now and still does it...but he's probably been sucking on that fist for 10 months now....5 months inside Mommy and 5 months outside Mommy.
As we said in the Army, "Same sh*t, different day."
If you think about what abortion is: itis the legalized murder for anyone under 9 months old...whether a baby is inside Mommy or outside Mommy has no bearing on anything.
Now with the all the Preemies, even this 9 month marker is irrelevent. Leaving Mommy at 6,7,8,9 months...what's the difference?
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