Lucy Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Hi! We are adopting and are considering a child who was 2.8 lbs at birth. Do any of you have a very low birthweight child, and if so, what have been the affects? Thanks, Rondi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ottakee Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Mine weren't but do you have more details such as gestational age? Maternal health during pregnancy, any drug/alcohol exposure, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 My niece was 1.75 lbs at birth. At 1.5yo she was walking and talking (in sentences). She probably has mild CP affecting some of her limbs (she had some brain bleeds), but she is very bright. The prognosis for a low-birthweight baby is a very broad range. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 My sister was only 2.2 lbs. at birth back in 1980 and dropped to 1 lb. 15 oz. before beginning to gain weight. Her only lasting issue was that she had childhood asthma. For the most part, she outgrew it when she got older. My mom's pregnancy was high risk from the get go. She bled and spotted the entire time she was pregnant with my sister and the doctor encouraged her to have an abortion believing that either the baby would die, my mom would, or both. Once my sister was born the doctors were amazed at how developed she was for being so premature. They said it was like her body knew that it wasn't going to last the entire pregnancy so everything speeded up development-wise. I agree with a PP though. A preemie's development can run the range from very minor issues to life changing ones. There is no way to know without an official doctor's prognosis and even then, who knows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paige Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 You will want to know why he or she is VLBW, the gestational age, and, if hospitalized, how the baby fared in the NICU. A premature VLBW baby who did well in the NICU would be less concerning than a full term VLBW who struggled in the NICU. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnIslandGirl Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 The wonderful thing is that technology is always improving, and a child's chances of thriving are so much better today than ever before! My DSS was a micro-preemie 24 years ago. He is blind, paralyzed from his armpits down, has CP and spastic seizure disorder... but his mind is as sharp as anyone I know! He can master video games just by sound and his memory recall is off the charts! These days, there are so many more success stories! Good luck with the newest member of your family! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splash Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 My dd was 3lbs and 30weeks. She walked around 22 months. Gross motor skills are still a little delayed but not bad. She has been in dance since 3yrs old, she couldn't even hop when she started, now she is doing great and is in advanced hip hop class. She has eye convergence problems and we're doing vision therapy so they will work together. She has food allergies and environmental allergies, don't know if that is related or not to preemie. She was a very high maintenance baby and now child. She has reflux and stomach issues. She is very bright, scores in 99th percentile. Taught herself to read, just seems to know math, etc. she is a delight and can't imagine life without her. Not easy though. My doctor said females 3lbs and up at least 30 weeks had best prognosis. Otherwise she wanted to look at paperwork to help me see what might be ahead. (My children were adopted as well) Good uck and congratulations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 I think the cause of the VLBW would be the concern, not the actual weight. Although that could cause some problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debbi in Texas Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 My son weighed 3lb 4 oz. He was born at 37 weeks. The reason for his low birth weight was that the placenta stopped growing at 21 weeks, but we don't know why that happened. He developed normally, with maybe a 3 week delay in the first months. Walked at 11 months. He is 18 now and still super skinny (110 pounds). But he made a 30 on his ACT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dancer_Mom Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 My twins were 1 lb 2 oz and 1 lb 5 oz. I would ask if they had any brain bleeds in the NICU. Mine did not - however one had some O2 issues that we were concerned about but now don't seem to affect him in the slightest. Our ongoing issues are eye checkups, and developmental delay. Currently they are "caught up" on all gross motor skills. They were significantly behind verbally but are getting closer to closing the gap. They are 4 years old. I have to say that their developmental delays don't seem to be reflective of their IQ so to speak. They still speak far behind the average 4 year old, but they are identifying colors, numbers, etc. and have already caught on to one to one correspondence in counting. BTW I am also speaking a second language with them and that could account for part of the language delay. I have a close friend who had many low birthweight babies and the only one that has more significant concerns had a grade 3 brain bleed while in the NICU. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 2.8 would be a good size for a 28 week baby, but bad for a 37 weeker....I agree with the others that you need to know gestational age. Brain bleeds and potential cerebral palsy are the biggest issues <30 weeks; if the baby was IUGR because of mom's hypertension and was born 32weeks-ish that can have no lasting effects. My current baby was born at 33+2. We aren't anticipating any long-term issues....her retinas were fine, her muscle tone is great, and developmentally she's where she should be. In my reading, provided baby catches up on her weight, the only potential long-term issues are small increased likelihoods of asthma, adhd, and some other minor learning disabilities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zebra Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 I agree that it's very important WHY the child was low birthweight, and also what happened to them while they were in the NICU. 3 lbs is the magic number, and the closer to 3 lbs a baby is the fewer long-term complications they tend to have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 Another person to just ask why his birth weight was so low. It is possible that those reasons would have more effect than being low birth weight. That (as well as neglect and abuse) is why my kids have had issues. The birth weight was a symptom of the greater issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
applethyme Posted January 10, 2013 Share Posted January 10, 2013 My dtr was born at 27 weeks weighing 2lb 3oz she spent 2.5 months in the NICU. My son was born at 25weeks weighing 1lb 7oz and spent 6.5months in the NICU. There are a lot of things that determin how they will do as they grow the course of the NICU stay is one. However, just like with full term babies, you don't always know what the future will bring. Currently dd is 6 and ds is 5. Ds reads at about a 2nd to 3rd grade level. Dd says she doesn't need to learn because brother knows how :glare: . Ds has many health issues due to being so premature and because he had a very bad infection that caused damage to his lungs. To see Ds you would never know about his issues. It has taken work, many doctors visits and therapy but he looks and is doing great. If you have specific questions feel free to PM me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy Posted January 11, 2013 Author Share Posted January 11, 2013 wow! Thanks, ladies. Unfortunately, there is no way to know why. And the area he is from (international), it is unlikely he spent any time in a nicu. No oxygen, no feeding help, no incubator. Just picked up, looked over at the hospital for a few days, and taken to the orphanage. Don't know if he's premie or IUGR. Mother unknown. He has been cared for wonderfully by the staff, but without much medical help. He is about 2years, walks with help, puts multiple words together, has the most captivating smile and has captured my heart... honestly, I'm not so worried about the physical issues, it's the congnitive and behavioral. I have four kiddos, one with special needs, and I wonder how much I can take on - but oh, my! he's beautiful! This is so hard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Splash Posted January 11, 2013 Share Posted January 11, 2013 You can have his file and video looked over by a doctor that specializes in International adoption. We did that with a child we were considering. It was helpful in looking at the possible challenges he might face in the future. We've had several friends do this as well. Sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith if you really think this child belongs in your family. My child with the greatest needs in our family was the child that was the "healthy" referral. All my kids with identified needs are doing great. Then there are the things that come out of the blue that no one is prepared for, like my dd's chronic illness that is genetic but we had no idea she had. I know all about those pictures tugging at your heart. That is why we have five. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jillian Posted January 28, 2013 Share Posted January 28, 2013 My aunt had a set of triplets and they were all born at 29 weeks, and only one had a VLBW. He was under 3lbs. He is still smaller than his brothers, but only about 6 months behind on skills from his brothers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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