Doctors hand over the baby to his parents at the National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology in Hà Nội on January 3. — VNS Photo Thanh Hải

HÀ NỘI — The National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology on January 3 announced that its doctors had successfully nurtured a 500-gram premature baby weighing only 500 grams after 25 weeks of pregnancy.

The mother, Bùi Ngọc Dung, 34 years old, is a Vietnamese living in Canada and her husband is Canadian. Dung has a history of one miscarriage at eight weeks and three stillbirths at 20 to 22 weeks of pregnancy. During this pregnancy, Dung returned to Việt Nam when she was 12 weeks pregnant.

Before coming to the National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dung had visited a number of hospitals in Hà Nội. When she was 12 weeks pregnant, she went to the Hanoi Medical University Hospital to monitor and treat hypertension, then monitor the pregnancy at Vinmec International Hospital. When the pregnancy was 24 weeks, the woman was admitted to the National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology for treatment and it was predicted that it would be difficult to save the baby's life.

The hospital director Prof. Dr. Trần Danh Cường said: "This is a special case. The case was severe for both mother and baby. The mother does not live in Việt Nam, but returned to the country in hopes of a successful birth at home. From a premature baby boy with a low birth weight of only 500 grams, the baby has developed normally, reaching a weight of two kilograms.

"The pregnant woman was admitted to the hospital in a state of pre-eclampsia with large edema. This is a very difficult case when the mother has pre-eclampsia and the child has growth retardation in utero, chronic malnutrition and fetal failure. Pre-eclampsia is one of the five complications of obstetrics. We were hoping to maintain the fetus in the womb until 28-29 weeks old to increase the baby's survival rate by three per cent per day,” Dr. Cường said.

On January 3, the baby is 97 days old (equivalent to 38 weeks gestation), weighing 2 kilos. He now can breathe air on his own and can smile spontaneously. — VNS Photo Thanh Hải

The patient was sent to the intensive care unit. Doctors took an ultrasound every two to three days to monitor the pregnancy closely. All modern facilities were mobilised to be ready to serve the treatment of the pregnant woman.

The hospital's doctors and nurses closely followed the pregnant woman every day. When the fetus was 25 weeks and six days old, the doctors decided to have a cesarean section, and then transferred the baby to the hospital’s Newborn Care and Treatment Centre for special care.

Dr Lê Minh Trác, Director of the hospital’s Centre for Neonatal Care and Treatment, said that premature and low-weight newborns are at high risk of feeding difficulties and being susceptible to infection. Doctors have successfully applied strategies to raise extremely low birth weight babies such as intubation from the beginning, early massage and early feeding.

The baby was fed breast milk from the beginning and completely gastrointestinal on day 12. On the 40th day, the baby got pneumonia, however, after that, he got better. With the efforts of the centre’s doctors and nurses, the baby has thrived spectacularly. Overcoming all difficulties, on January 3, the baby was 97 days old (equivalent to 38 weeks gestation), weighing 2 kilos.

The baby can breathe air on his own and can smile spontaneously. He also has a good sucking reflex while echocardiography and trans-fontanel ultrasound have not detected any abnormalities.

The success is a result of very strict care of pregnant women and newborns by obstetricians and pediatricians at the National Hospital of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

"Our efforts not only bring joy to the family but also mark a new medical success of the country, especially in the field of obstetrics,” added Dr. Cường. — VNS