Newborn with complications

[jimwallace]

Hi there,

This is my first time writing on here as I would appreciate any advice if anyone can give it. This may be in the wrong area too so my apologies if it is.

My wife just gave birth by elective c-section to our baby boy Curtis two days ago (7/5/11) at St George private hospital in Sydney. This is her third baby (my second), first delivered naturally and last one also elective c-section. He was 38 weeks old to the day. He had also been breech and transverse right up until birth.

When he was born he had a MASSIVE and I mean massive knot in his umbilical cord, so it was lucky we did go c-section. He had some fluid on his lungs which they thought would go away, so they had him in the special care nursery.

It took longer then they thought, but eventually they weened him off the oxygen, and about 7 hours after he was born he was brought to mum to try to feed and they thought he could be released to us.

The paediatrician called him back in as he wanted to keep him in the nursery overnight. He said he had a heart "noise" that he believed was pretty common and should clear up overnight.

Yesterday he was good, very stable but docile. The heart noise was still there, so an xray was done on his chest but it was clear. They decided to keep him in again and if the noise was still there today they will get a cardiac specialist to check him out. His "sats" (i'm learning all the terms now) are generally very good, but he will occasionally drop right down and then it will pick up again straight away.

By last night he hadn't done a poo. The P suggested the nurses give him a small sepository to get him moving, as his stomach was full of food (mix of a small amount of expressed colostrum and formula). My wife has tried a couple of times to breast feed but he isn't showing interest in sucking. By this morning he still hadn't done a poo, so they have him on a drip and are waiting for the P to come in today and perhaps get a specialist to come and look at him.

I guess my questions are - are these two conditions "normal/common"? The midwives and P were saying not to worry too much but it is hard not to. I know he is in very good hands at least.

Any advice/personal experience would be much appreciated.

Cheers
Jim

[GrabbyCrabby]

A bump for the morning crew :). Hopefully someone will be able to answer your questions soon!

[DairyfreeDiva]

A huge congrats! Wonderful news on the birth of your baby....

I'm sorry I don t really have any advice on either of those conditions I only wanted to say that both my babies were born c section and had a lot of fluid in their lungs which made their breathing sound phlegmy for weeks.... Dunno if that helps? But I stressed out a lot and they were both fine. It sounds like he is in good hands .. Maybe ask to speak to a midwife and tell them your concerns and ask for more info off the drs

[loving6]

bump

[elleandsam]

My DS was born at 35 weeks via csection and had a rattly sound when he breathes foe weeks. Kangaroo care, as in being held skin to skin with mum, is great for keeping sats normal, I would sit like this with DS for hours in the nursery while we both dozed on and off, it's also brilliant for milk supply. Gas your wife asked to speak to a lactation consultant?

[jimwallace]

The dr has just checked him and has had an abdomen xray done. They are transferring him to randwick childrens hospital to try to flush his bowel out to see if he has a merconium plug.
They are also doing genetic testing to rule out anything else as he is quite docile.
Not fun...sorry for telling you all about my problems i just feel very useless.

In relation to the lactation, my wife has expressed what she can as he isnt sucking. They have had to drain his stomach though as it was all just building up

[loving6]

:hugs::hugs::hugs::hugs::hugs:

That what we are here for. To support each other. Feel free to cry, vent and celebrate his victories with us. If there anything we can do or any questions you have just ask.

[gizmoduckus]

We had something similar happen to us when our second son was born except that he was born vaginally not by c-section.

If he hasn't passed his first bowel movement and is all backed then there is nothing you can do to get him to eat until they clear it out. They will probably put him on a fluid drip to keep him hydrated until it's clear.

My son ended up having something called Hirschsprungs Disease which is something that they might talk to you about if they are unable to clear it but it is extremely rare and it is probably the more common problem of the meconium plug.

If you have any questions, please don't be afraid to ask. The good thing is that your son is definitely in the right place at the moment.

[rosewater]

How is your little one doing now Jim? Thinking of you and your wife.

[jimwallace]

Thank you for your support everyone. We are now at the Royal Hospital For Women at Randwick in Sydney. The surgeon has done a barium enema and he is 70% sure it is Hirschprungs disease. He will perform a biopsy today. From there we need to wait to see if it is hirschprungs and then find out about having an operation done.
I feel very selfish as I know there are people out there much worse off than my little baby but it is still increadibly tough seeing him in that humidicrib and unable to do anything.

[gizmoduckus]

:hugs::hugs::hugs:

Good luck with the biopsy today.

Hirschsprungs is hard to deal with but there is a wonderful support group out there that I can put you in contact with if your son does have it. Please let us know how you go.

[elleandsam]

I know how it feels to see your baby in the humicrib, I remember when DS came our and went into a normal bassinet and then went back into the humicrib a few hours later, I was devastated and cried for a long time.

There are things you can do, ask the nurses if you can do his cares and take his tempreture, read to him (it doesn't matter what you read he will just enjoy the sound of your voice) and if possible hold him as much as you can, skin to skin is great for all babies.

:hugs: :hugs: :hugs:

[jimwallace]

The little fella has been moved to ICU level 3 at Royal Womens. They found out they he had picked up a staph infection. This could explain some of his problems like his forgetting to breath etc. They have him on a cocktail of antibiotics though so hopefully this will clear up.
Still waiting on the biopsy result regarding hirschsprungs. The doctors are pretty certain that is what it is, but he is also confident he can do the lapro operation so that he wont need a stoma.
My wife got to have a cuddle last night which was great.
Thanks again for all of your support everyone. I find its really helpful for me to write about things on here and know that people care.

[LnW]

congrats on the birth of ur precious bub!!!!! massive hugs for u and ur wife! it must b so hard for u, i hope u have alot of support with ur other kids!
this is exactly wat we r here for on bubhub, vent away!!!!!

my bub was in special care for a cpl of days after birth for a heart condition, it is so hard being away from them! i am thinking of u and ur family and hope for a speedy recovery for ur bub!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Mummypants]

Hi there, just wanted to wish you, your wife & beautiful bub all the best! It's so hard being in the hospital and feeling so helpless with a new bub! Good luck I hope he has a speedy recovery! 

[Mabelline]

My friends baby had a few bottom issues. Probably not the same as your bub, they fixed her when she was about 6 or 8 weeks, they picked it up late, as she was not in any discomfort. She had a balloon and a temporary bag while they got things sorted. I think she really had to spend one night in hospital. She was good as gold within a
couple of weeks. Drank normally, moved onto solids fine. Doctors are amazing, and these things occur all the time, it's just a bit scary cause bub is so small. They are tough little things. Congratulations on your bub. I hope he gets to go home soon.

[MamaC]

Firstly, congratulations on the arrival of Curtis!! :cheerleader2:

What a rollercoaster! I truly hope that his health issues improve asap and you all get to go home together soon. And also :fingerscrossed: you get to give the little guy some cuddles soon! How are your older children coping? :hugs:
Do you have lots of support around you all? BubHub is a wonderful place for advice and support.

[Nowhere]

Congratulations on the arival of your little baby, Im so very sorry to here of the stuggles you guys are faceing.

Staph is a scar infection to deal with I know this from experience as my little one has had staph a couple of times one being in her blood stream.

I hope the result of the biospy are all clear, My little girl has a few stomas on her abdomen, if you ever want to chat or have any questions let me know

Thinking of you guys

[Widget]

Congrats on the latest addition!!

Have his heart sounds settled yet?

There is great support here for your wife and self! I know we haven't kept the bowel issues group up to date but there are a few of us around... Also if there is anything going on with his heart the heart mums are fantastic support as quiet as we are... No matter the size or circumstance BH usually has someone you can share experiences with.

Giz, Amy, do either of you remember where the BM thread is? I haven't seen an update since around Sept/Oct... Might be handy for these guys... Too hard to find on my phone.

Good luck with the results and remember no matter how scary and hard it seems, you always find a way and honestly will surprise yourselves with your strength for Curtis!! Cliche but true...



Sent from my iPhone as usual lol

[silentrockfaery]

Hi. I don't really have much advice, but I couldn't not say anything. Congrats to you and your wife on the birth of your son :)

I hope things improve for you both.

[jimwallace]

Hi again everyone,

Thank you so much for your messages. Sorry it has taken me so long to reply.
He is an amazing little thing. The day after we were told he had staph they found out it was a contaminant and he didnt actually have it. The following day his biopsy results came back, and we found out that he didnt have Hirschsprungs. Almost on cue he started having bowel movements like a little champion. They stopped the washouts he kept up the movements.
They then moved him in to a normal cot and my wife started feeding him. He continued to pick up, so they then got us to stay overnight with him in a room on site while my wife fed him and they monitored.
After this night, they decided it must have just been a merconium plug and they let us go home after 8 long days.

So, we now have our little man at home and he is doing really well. The two older girls love having him here (although the two year old is still in denial). He is doing all the usual newborn things (eating, sleeping, pooing). All the "worries" that we had before his birth (like "oh no, how are we going to deal with getting up at night" etc) are now blessings for us, and each time he wakes up it reminds me that we have him at home and that he is healthy. My wife, who wasn't so keen on having a third baby, now wont let her little man go!!

So thanks again and my best wishes to you all :celebrate::celebrate:

Thanks
Jim

[Mabelline]

Best news I've heard all week. Ace

[Widget]

Awesome news!!!

[SuperGranny]

hi jimwallace, so happy to hear the good news. That must have been a terrible time for you both, may there be nothing but good health and happy memories from now on. Marie.

[icugal]

I've only just found this thread but I just wanted to say that it's great to hear that your little man is doing well now. It must have been so scary for all.

Welcome to the world Curtis !! :bigwelcome:

[gizmoduckus]

Glad to hear that he got the all clear and is now home with you all :goodvibes:

[MrsBeee]

Jim that's such wonderful news after what must have been an awfully worrying and stressful time for you and your family. I'm so glad that Curtis is doing so well :goodvibes:

[Justinie]

So glad to see that little Curtis is doing so well now :D

[lovebeingamum!]

Best news I've heard all week. Ace

Agreed :yes:

[Mummypants]

So so happy to hear the good news!!!! Congratulations... And all the best 

[TAD654]

my baby was in the special care nursery there at the royal hospital for women back in march... The drs there are fantastic and so r the nurses!! Please give them a special hello from Baby Drake and his mother Rebekah.
My son was born with bilateral hydronephrosis with basically is very dilated kidneys due to blockages in the tubes that go from his bladder to his ureters. I dont no very much about ur sons condition but my heart goes out to u fully.. My son went through so many different tests and procedures n i do fully understand how hard it is to watch so helplessly. I hope things are improving for ur little one would love to hear how he is going.

[jimwallace]

Hello again everyone,

Our little man is now over a month old and doing really well. He is keeping us up at night and feeding/sleeping all the time as newborns are supposed to do!
We are still waiting on the results of some more genetic tests and need to go and get another sweat test (he didnt produce enough sweat first attempt), but so far everything that has come back has been good.
Our biggest worry with him at the moment is how to deal with his stuffy nose, which is no worry at all!
Thanks again for all your kind words and support.
Jim