7 April 2014

Nathaniel's story

We are so proud to share with you Nathaniel's journey so far as  told by his beautiful and brave mum.

"Introducing Nathaniel, born on the 21st of April 2013 at 24 weeks and 2 days.  Nathaniel weighed just 710 grams at birth. My Waters broke at 23 weeks and 5 days with no reason why. I developed an infection in my placenta so I had to be induced. 4 and a half hours later my little miracle was born. 

The doctors gave Nathaniel a 25% chance of survival.  Well, he beat all odds and came out crying. 

Nathaniel has gone through many blood transfusions. He has been to many hospitals. He went to sydney for an eye operation. He has also had stage 3 bleeds in both eyes.  

After successful surgery, Nathaniel's lungs collapsed and he had to be put into a coma and on a ventilator. It took his lungs about 2 weeks to strengthen. 

Nathaniel has been diagnosed with Chronic Lung Disease (2) and requires oxygen. 

Just 3 days ago we got some good news. Nathaniel could come off the oxygen during the day. It was a very long 4 and a half months.

Im so lucky to have him I treasure every day."


Extremely preterm (<28 weeks)
Very preterm (28 to <32 weeks)
Moderate to late preterm (32 to <37 weeks)
‘Low’ birth weight at birth: Weighs less than 2,500 grams
‘Very low’ birth weight at birth : Weighs less than 1,500 grams
‘Extremely low’ birth weight at birth: Weighs less than 1,000 grams
(2) Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD; formerly chronic lung disease of infancy) is a chronic lung disorder that is most common among children who were born prematurely. Bronchopulmonary dysplasia results in significant morbidity and mortality. Bronchopulmonary dysplasia is more common in infants with low birth weight and those who received prolonged mechanical ventilation to treat respiratory distress syndrome. The definition of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) has continued to evolve since 1967 when the disorder was first described in publication, which resulted from effects of oxygen and mechanical ventilation in premature infants with severe respiratory distress syndrome (RDS). This is due to changes in the population at risk. Changes such as more survivors at earlier gestational ages and improved neonatal management including surfactant, antenatal glucocorticoid therapy, and less aggressive mechanical ventilation.
Currently the description of BPD and the grading of its severity into mild, moderate and severe correlates with the infant's maturity, growth and overall severity of illness. The new system offers a better description of underlying pulmonary disease and its severity.

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