Parents in UAE lose 2 babies, struggle to keep third alive

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Parents in UAE lose 2 babies, struggle to keep third alive

Dubai - Sharjah-based parent Sajith Habib was overjoyed when his wife Sajina Sajith delivered triplets on August 27.

By Dhanusha Gokulan

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Published: Tue 20 Nov 2018, 10:00 PM

Last updated: Wed 21 Nov 2018, 12:30 PM

An Indian family from Kerala had lost two of their triplets two days after their birth in August. Now, the family is desperately struggling to keep the last baby alive.
Sharjah-based parent Sajith Habib was overjoyed when his wife Sajina Sajith delivered triplets on August 27 at the Zulekha Hospital in Dubai. Everything turned on a dime when two of their babies died - one after the other - on August 29 due to the medical complications of premature birth.
Today, almost three months later, the third baby, Humeira Maryam, is fighting for her life at the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit (Nicu), as Sajith runs from pillar to post trying to settle hospital bills, getting an original birth certificate, and applying for his baby's passport.
As at Tuesday, Humeira was 85 days old and weighed approximately 1.3kg, quite a leap from her and her siblings' birth weight of 460g. The average weight of a baby born at full term is 2.5 kg.
Baby's condition
Doctors at the Zulekha Hospital told Khaleej Times that the baby is in urgent need of treatment for a lung condition called "chronic lung disease of prematurity", a common problem for "extremely pre-term" babies.
Dr Sridhar Kalyanasundaram, consultant neonatology and specialist paediatric at the hospital, said: "The mother had a triplet pregnancy, presented at 23 weeks of gestation, which required emergency delivery. ... The survival rate at 23 weeks in the best-case scenario is around 15 to 20 per cent."
"This is known as the limit or threshold of viability. The most common reason for the death of babies born this early is simply that the lungs are not mature enough to allow survival, despite the best possible support, which was the case in two of the triplets," he added.
The baby is on breathing support and is being fed through a tube in her stomach, Dr Kalyanasundaram said. "It could take 6 to 8 more weeks for the baby to be ready to go home, provided that the lung condition responds well to the treatment and the baby continues progressing well."
Treatment overshot insurance plans
Sajith's insurance plan has covered over Dh600,000 in medical bills; however, the cost of keeping the baby in the hospital has already exceeded the cut-off amount.
Hailing from Kerala's capital Thiruvananthapuram, the father said: "I wanted to take my wife to Kerala for her delivery. I had booked her tickets to travel during the fifth month of her pregnancy in August. A week before we were supposed to leave, she developed complications. The babies were born soon after."
"However, since her pregnancy was a high-risk one, we could not get a travel certificate for her to go to Kerala," he added.
A tearful Sajina said: "We just want our last baby to survive so we can go home."
The charges of keeping the baby in the Nicu go up to Dh6,300 to Dh7,000 Dhs per day. Sajid said that the hospital has kept the baby's original birth certificate, due to which he cannot get a passport issued.
"We have a copy of the certificate for now. The good news is that Maryam is out of immediate danger. We were told she has increased in weight, about 20g in the last day or so," he said.
What's next for the baby?
Dr Kalyanasundaram said: "When a baby is born extremely premature, all the systems are very immature. The lung immaturity needs extensive support for many weeks, the gastrointestinal tract is immature and it takes a long time for the baby to cope with feeding.
"The other organs need support related to immaturity related problems as well, and above all, the immune system is very underdeveloped resulting in a very high risk of serious infections."
"So, inevitably, all babies born at extreme pre-term gestations are very sick to start with, with a very high risk of mortality. Even with the best of treatment, it takes many months for them to stabilise," the doctor added.
dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com
 


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