On Thursday morning, the baby was discharged from hospital in a healthy state, weighing 2.6 kg, after undergoing nearly five months of treatment at the hospital.
Born to V.T.D., from Hanoi’s Cau Giay district, the baby weighed just 500g at birth and had a weak and incomplete respiratory system, as well as showing the phenomenon of spasmodic breath, discrete heart beat and weak reflexes.
D.’s family said that after many years undergoing infertility treatment, the couple found it difficult to have children. Her family was very happy to discover that she was pregnant. However, on January 26, D. showed signs of preterm labour and the baby was born prematurely.
In a weak condition, soon after its birth, the baby was treated and provided with follow-up care by medical staff at the hospital. The treatment has worked miracles as the weight of the baby reached 2,650g, being well-fed and showing healthy movement.
According to Assoc. Prof. Vu Ba Quyet, the director of the hospital, each year, the facility receives and treats around 25,000-26,000 newborns, of those, low birth weight babies and preterm births account for 4,000 cases. Among them, 30% of cases involve babies weighing under 1,500g, born earlier than 30 weeks.
Previously, in 2010, the hospital successfully treated the lowest birth weight in Vietnam at 500g. The baby has grown up to be a healthy child and enrolled for school normally. Five years later, the hospital saved twins born from in vitro fertilisation at the 24th week, which is the earliest preterm birth in Vietnam, weighing 500g and 600g, respectively. The two children are growing normally in their hometown in Thai Binh province.
Quyet said that the hospital has developed advanced techniques to limit the risk for extremely premature babies, including resuscitation in the delivery room to prevent respiratory failure, CPAP therapy, early feeding via veins and phototherapy treatment for jaundice.
"The survival rate of low birth weight babies and preterm births weighing from 1,000g to 1.500g is nearly 90%, while the rate for premature babies fewer than 1,000g is 30%," he said.
