Woman Gives Birth to Octuplets in Southern California

Octuplets!

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BELLFLOWER, Calif. – A woman gave birth Monday to eight babies, only the second time in history octuplets have survived more than a few hours, doctors said.

The mother gave birth to six boys and two girls weighing between 1 pound, 8 ounces, and 3 pounds, 4 ounces, doctors at Kaiser Permanente Bellflower Medical Center said. The hospital had scheduled a Caesarean section for seven babies, but doctors were surprised when an eighth came out at 10:48 a.m.

"My eyes were wide," Dr. Karen Maples said, explaining her reaction to the last birth.

Doctors said the babies were born nine weeks premature but are in stable condition. Two newborns were placed on ventilators and a third needs oxygen.

Utah Newborns Tested For Cystic Fibrosis

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As many as 25 babies born in Utah this year with cystic fibrosis (CF), or who carry the CF gene, will be diagnosed early thanks to the expansion of the Utah Department of Health's (UDOH) Newborn Screening Program. The program screens blood samples from approximately 55,000 newborns every year and identifies nearly 500 babies who are born with 36 different genetic disorders.

"Often times diseases are not detected and diagnosed until symptoms actually begin to present themselves, which unfortunately could be too late to prevent disability or death," said UDOH Executive Director Dr. David Sundwall. "The Newborn Screening Program is critical to the early detection of disease and allows doctors to provide treatments that will help ensure these babies lead fuller and healthier lives as they grow up."

Preemie Research Feeds Hope

Preemie Research Feeds Hope

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CU doctors have spent years trying to perfect intravenous nutrition for the smallest preemies, whose bodies often aren't ready for milk. Now — armed with their aggressive nutrition plan — they're investigating whether it's possible for babies born early to grow as fast as babies in the womb.

The results could affect infant nutrition guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics that haven't been updated for 24 years.

"We've been pushing the levels of intake in nutrition for a long time," said Dr. Patti Thureen, a UC Denver pediatrics professor and lead investigator in the study. "We're trying to mimic what we think the fetus has."

Thureen's work during the past decade has led to a preemie nutrition table — requested by hospitals from Mexico to the United Arab Emirates — that allows doctors to calculate exactly how much sugar, protein and fat a preemie can handle. The table is based on weight and the number of days alive.

"We want to start optimal nutrition from the moment of birth," Thureen said. "We don't want them to lose any weight that first day."

Omega-3 Treatment Helpful for Premature Infants

Omega-3 Treatment helpful for Premature infants

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Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is a long-chain fatty acid called omega-3, a nutrient that helps to develop the brain. Over half of the brain is fat and a quarter of the fat is made up of DHA, which means that premature babies naturally would not have the normal amount of DHA in their brains, which can lead to developmental problems. Outside the body, DHA is also found in certain kinds of fish and organ meats and smaller fatty acid chains found in oils, walnuts, and leafy greens, and can be assembled by the body once it is strong enough for the task. Preemies aren’t able to assemble new DHA individually and the researchers hoped that adding DHA to their diets could improve their health significantly.

Makrides also notes that her hospital is going to start offering the DHA supplementation diet to its premature babies and because no harmful side effects have been proven with the addition of DHA in your diet, don’t be surprised if doctors and hospitals in the United States start prescribing omega-3 rich foods for women who are already pregnant or for those who are hoping to get pregnant. However, please always ask your doctor before taking supplements on your own that may interact with other medications.

Mom loses her life while pregnant, but saves her preemie daughter

Her mum would've have loved her so much: Tearful words of man whose baby was born TWO DAYS after wife died

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Two days after Jayne Soliman was declared brain-dead, her grieving husband saw her life-support machine turned off.

In a moment of unbelievable poignancy, he was then given their baby daughter to hold for the first time.

Doctors had kept 41-year-old Mrs Soliman's heart beating after she suffered a brain haemorrhage.

For 48 hours they pumped large doses of steroids into her body to help the baby's lungs develop.

Then they delivered baby Aya Jayne by caesarean section. At 26 weeks, she weighed just 2lb 11/2oz.

The tiny infant was placed on her mother's shoulder for a moment before being handed to her father, Mahmoud Soliman.

Aya - her name is a word from the Koran meaning miracle - is now doing well in hospital while 29-year-old Mr Soliman struggles to cope with the misery of suddenly losing his wife and the joy of becoming a father.

University Nurses play preemies for a day

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U. nurses are preemies for a day

Karen Zanezzi lay on the ground as co-workers kneeled around her, talking loudly as they hurriedly taped a straw in her mouth, taped her arms down, checked her heartbeat and turned her over.

One word came to her mind: "Invasive."

Now the registered nurse and her co-workers at the University of Utah's neonatal intensive care unit know what their defenseless patients experience -- and they pledged to do better.

The group was part of a "Preemie for a Day" training, sponsored by the March of Dimes, to help the U.'s NICU staff continue to improve care of their premature charges. The goal, essentially, is to make the NICU more womb-like to support the preemies' development.

She said the U. has already vastly improved: Lighting is indirect, carpet muffles noise, rooms are smaller and new beds are more cocoon-like.