Efforts to save the life of a premature baby boy whose mother was bitten by a rabid dog

(Baonghean.vn) - In recent days, the Obstetrics Department of Nghe An General Hospital has been trying to save the life of a 33-week-old premature baby boy - the son of Nguyen Thi Tin (32 years old, Nghi Van, Nghi Loc), the victim who died from a rabid dog bite.

The first 3 days after birth, the baby boy was continuously in critical condition, with a poor prognosis. The baby was regularly maintained on nCPAP with high oxygen pressure (FiO2 75%). Blood gas tests showed respiratory acidosis, high CO2 in the blood. X-ray images taken right in the incubator showed opaque lungs.

Up to now, after 5 days of being closely monitored 24/7 in the Obstetrics Department, the baby boy is still in the incubator; his respiratory condition is more stable, no more apnea episodes; oxygen saturation is stable, reaching 95-98%; the hyaline membrane disease has improved. However, because the newborn is too weak, it can get worse at any time; at the same time, the family is taking care of the baby's mother, so the doctors of the Neonatal Department and Obstetrics Department are actively treating and caring for the baby.

The 33-week-old premature baby boy is receiving special care.

Previously, on June 9, Nghe An General Hospital received patient Nguyen Thi Tin for treatment with a diagnosis of rabies. The situation was extremely critical, the mother's life had almost no chance of being saved, and the prognosis was near death. The plan to perform a cesarean section, with the hope of saving the baby before the mother fell into a critical condition, possibly losing both mother and child, was quickly decided by doctors from the Tropical Diseases Department and the Obstetrics Department during an interdisciplinary consultation.

At 12 noon on June 10, patient Nguyen Thi Tin was transferred to the operating table to deliver the fetus in a state of distress due to the onset of rabies. To avoid stimulation, the surgical team had to fix the patient's limbs to the corners of the operating table. The anesthesia and resuscitation team performed endotracheal anesthesia so that the obstetrician could perform the cesarean section. The 1.6 kg baby boy was born at 33 weeks of gestation.

Predicting in advance that this would be a difficult birth due to the fetus being sick in the mother's body, the Neonatal team was notified to be ready in the operating room, coordinating promptly to handle the emergency situation of the baby right after birth.

As initially assessed, after birth, the baby boy did not cry, did not breathe, was cyanotic, had flaccid muscle tone, and had weak newborn reflexes. The doctor had to quickly perform active resuscitation and balloon pumping; however, the baby's condition did not improve. The plan to intubate and continue pumping the balloon was implemented. When the baby gradually became more rosy and began to breathe on his own, the doctor urgently transferred the baby to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to continue using the nCPAP ventilator.

Doctors and nurses are on duty regularly to take care of the baby.

“With the diagnosis of grade IV hyaline membrane disease in a premature infant, we explained to the patient's family that the baby needed to be injected with Sulfactan (a lung maturation drug in premature infants) to improve the baby's respiratory failure. However, due to the high cost of the drug, while the family's circumstances were too difficult, they could not afford to give the baby this drug. Therefore, the treatment for the baby was more difficult, and the prognosis was very cautious. The baby was placed with an umbilical vein catheter and fed with intravenous fluids. We used an electric syringe to control the concentration and speed of the fluid infused into the baby's body, ensuring that blood sugar was always stable. In addition, the baby was given antibiotics to prevent infection in premature infants and actively exposed to phototherapy due to the appearance of physiological jaundice." - Dr. Tran Anh Thai, Neonatal team commented.

Hoang Yen