nec... more questions for ozark

Question

Thank you for all the helpful info, you cleared up a lot of gray areas for me.  It was so odd that my daughter even had this disease.  She was far from premature and weighed 8 lbs. 10 oz at birth.  I just dont understand what kind of circumstances cause the whole disease.  Can you give me some specific examples?  The intestinal scarring was on the inside... and the surgeon thought maybe it was like that all along.  Would that be considered maybe a birth defect instead of nec?  I understand why her stools are the way they are... I just wonder what the future holds for her in that respect.  I am not having any luck toilet training her.  She is not even interested, and I am sure that has something to do with it.  The part of her intestine removed was the first 2/3's adjacent to the small intestine.  That is where the ruptured occurred, right where the two organs meet.  So can you tell me to what extent the remaining large intestine will be able to compensate for that which was lost?

becky7904 · Answer

thank you ozark... for all your helpful info.  my daughter is presently doing well and will continue to do so, i believe.  these were just questions i had been mulling over for quite some time. thanks again for your input

ozark · Answer

becky   sorry for the delay in answering...i havent been on lately....i odnt think your daughters nec was due to the nurse's finger....babys are exposed to many organisms...hospitals are not sterile..if that was the case, many babies would have nec and since this can be discovered at birth, i tend to think that that isnt a cause..I know its hard to be in limbo re the cause but there are many infants born with diseases with no known cause....I hope your daugfhter continues to be healthy and happy... good luck

becky7904 · Answer

She did have a couple normal stools before the nec was discovered.  Could it have been contracted through a nurse there.  My husband is convinced she got it because he caught a nurse using her bare finger as a pacifier to our daughter.  The nurse has since been "let go".  Could she have transferred some sort of germ or bacteria that would have caused this?

ozark · Answer

In regards to your question whether it was nec or not, it probably was.  Did she have normal stools prior to the rupture?

becky7904 · Answer

Thanks for the quick reply.  The rupture happened after feedings.  She started out ok, but quickly descended into not wanting to eat at all and when she was 2 days old they discovered a small amount of blood in her stool.  The doctors then did an xray and noticed blockage in her intestine.  Everything went from there.  She was 4 days old before the rupture actually occurred.

ozark · Answer

Hi becky   It's hard for me to give you specifics  regarding the disease since i dont know your daughter's circumstances....It does occur in full term babies but less so....The scarring would not be a birth defect rather a result of nec....Did your dtr's rupture occur before or after feedings, without feedings or was it noticed at birth?  Regarding toilet training...since she proabably lost her ileocecal valve with the upper part of her colon, her stools will be on the loose side which might make it a little difficult to toilet train at this time...You should talk to your pediatrician about ways to firm up her stool so she can get the sensation of needing to go if this is the reason...Also look up on the web,nec, spelled out, and there are a few sights that are very good re this disease.....I hope i have helped you in some way...Good Luck

nec... more questions for ozark

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