Premature Baby 25 Weeks

My grandson Kaden was taken by emergency c section this morning at 25 weeks. He was taken to UCSF. Can you please tell me what the common symptoms or problems that may be encountered for a baby born this early. I believe he is on a ventilator. I just want to understand what we will be going through..is there a critical period?

[Yao Sun, MD, PhD]

Congratulations on your grandson!  If your grandson is at UCSF, I can speak from experience when I say that you should feel free to ask questions to the healthcare team there and get information about what to expect for a 25 week premature infant.  It is a complicated topic that deserves more explanation than I can put into this response.

In most hospitals (including UCSF), the healthcare team will not give out information to people if they are not accompanied by at least one of the parents.  This is because we want to make sure that the parents receive all the information directly, and that there is no miscommunication about the baby's clinical status by having other people tell the parents information they have heard.

If the parents consent to it, you can ask to be part of family meetings where the physicians and nurses discuss the baby's current clinical status and what to expect in the future.  There's also a lot of "bedside" teaching where the nurses in particular discuss with the parents what is going on with their baby.

In terms of a "critical period", most infant mortality occurs within the first 48 hours for a critically ill newborn infant.  Other risks and problems can occur during the entire hospital stay, but the overall survival rates for 25 week infants is very good.  Baby's that are this premature, however, are at risk for long term neurodevelopmental problems.  At UCSF, we are studying ways to try and reduce the risk for those problems.

[dana741]

I had a 23 weeker and he is 2 today. He was in the hospital for 142 days.

He is a little miracle... he has been released form all doctors.. Yeah!!
Nothing is wrong with him at all, he is a typical 2 year old.  

When he was in the NICU it was very hard he had ups and downs.. Now you would never know it..

I hope you grandson does well as my little miracle..

Dana

[lou88]

Congratulations!!!!!

I have had 2 premature babies both at 30wks. it was a scarey process at 30weeks so i cant imagine what you are going though now, however when the pediatrician spoke to me after having my sons he told me that from 25weeks babies have a fighting chance. Sure there maybe a few scares, there always is with babies. Both of my boys stayed in the neotatal unit untill they 36weeks in gestation. They are both fighting fit, 1 is 2 years old and the other is 1 and you would never no they were ever premature.

Trust me they are worth that extra little bit of worry!!!

God Bless

Louise