Vijayawada : Ankura Hospital for Women & Children, a prominent healthcare institution known for its specialized services in women and child health, has achieved a remarkable feat by successfully treating and rehabilitating the lives of five prematurely born babies, including a twin. These were possible as the hospital has a team of highly skilled doctors Dr. T. V. Vijay Kumar, Medical Director, Dr. Indu Sree Satti, Dr. Raja Ashok Koganti, Dr. Srimukhi Anumolu, , Consultant Paediatrician & Neonatologist, nursing staff and intensivists supported by state-of-the-art technology to save the lives of critical patients/newborn children. They infused new life into the newborn babies, who were having complex medical problems.
Ankura Hospitals is equipped with Green OT, Level 3 NICU, and Level 3 PICU which encourages and supports sustainable healthcare delivery, to facilitate premature babies with critical conditions and to deliver the highest level of quality paediatric care. The highly skilled and efficient critical care team is more than adept in handling all kinds of critical cases with expertise and thereby assuring quality care and unique patient experiences.
Speaking about the achievement Dr. T. V. Vijay Kumar, Medical Director, Ankura Hospital, Vijayawada said, “At Ankura Hospital it is our mission to save lives. We have a team of experienced doctors trained in using state-of-the-art facilities to handle the unique challenges of premature childbirth. Saving the lives of the 5 babies, born prematurely is an ode to the skills of the team of doctors and the advanced technology available at the hospital. This accomplishment stands as a testament to the hospital’s commitment to the well-being of its patients.”
Speaking about the accomplishment Dr. Krishna Prasad Rao Vunnam, Founder and Managing Director – Ankura Hospital for Women & Children said, “We are delighted to have saved the lives of 5 Premature New Born babies. There were complexities involved in all . However our doctors handled these critical cases is a testament to the dedication and expertise of our medical team. These cases highlight the fact that Ankura Hospital believes in giving top-notch healthcare to the patients with a team of highly skilled medical professionals and state-of-the-art infrastructure like Level 3 NICU and PICU across all centres.”
Discharging a preterm baby requires a team approach. We are proud to say that none of the babies had hospital-acquired infection. Our team of sisters, the infection control nurse, and the support staff did an extremely good job in following all the infection control practices. All the babies were discharged to home with age-appropriate neurological development and without any morbidities.
A summary of the cases:
The first case was that of a prematurely born female baby. Born in the 24th Week and weighing only 600 gms, the baby had severe respiratory problems requiring intubation in the delivery room. She was shifted to NICU and was put on mechanical ventilation and surfactant was administered. Her health condition improved in the coming days and she was first treated with CPAP and then room air. Baby had apnea, and desaturation requiring respiratory support (LFNC) with minimal FiO2 requirement for 3 weeks. She had feeding intolerance issues, due to which baby weight gain was poor in the initial 4 weeks. However, later baby improved after correcting hyponatremia (low sodium levels). Ankura Hospital and its team of doctors gave the newborn developmentally supportive care throughout the hospital stay.
In the Second Case: The male baby one of the twins weighing just 600 gm had a respiratory problem at the time of birth, hence he was intubated in the delivery room, started on mechanical ventilation and given 1 dose of surfactant. The condition of the baby improved in 48 hours and was kept on CPAP and was gradually weaned to room air after that. The baby had developed haemodynamically significant PDA which was treated. The newborn was breastfed with all kinds of fortification. He also received Kangaroo Mother care for proper weight gain. He was discharged on the 69th day with the weight going up to 1.5 kgs.
In the Third case, the first twin was born prematurely at 28 weeks at the Hospital weighing 800 gms had severe respiratory distress, hence CPAP support had to be started and surfactant was given for lung development. In the initial stages, she was given parenteral nutrition. After nearly a week she was taken off from respiratory support. She has abdominal distention and was kept on NPO. Later on, the baby was shifted to the ward when she had gained about 500 gms more than her birth weight and ultimately discharged after 52 days with a weight of 1.5 kg
In the Fourth case, a baby boy was born prematurely at 27 weeks at a remote location and weighed 900 grams at birth. Our team of experts attended the baby at the local hospital, resuscitated and brought to Ankura hospital. He required ventilation and surfactant (emulsifier) therapy. The NICU team had a tough time as the newborn was unable to digest Milk. He was also given Oxygen for a prolonged period due to his immature lungs. The baby boy was treated in the hospital for around 60 days before being discharged with an increased weight of 1.65 kg.
The Fifth case was of a boy born prematurely at 27 weeks and weighed 900 gm at birth at Ankura Hospital. The NICU team received, resuscitated, shifted to NICU and kept him on Surfactant (emulsifier) therapy and CPAP care which ensured no complexity arose. The hospital urged the parents to give filial care to the child and discharged the baby after treating him in the hospital for 45 days with an increased weight of 1.52 kgs.