Premature births: Baby born at 22 weeks survives against odds

A babe fixed little than a 10% accidental of surviving erstwhile she was calved astatine 22 weeks has beaten the likelihood and is thriving, her parents person said.

Imogen weighed 515g (1lb 1oz) erstwhile she was calved astatine Swansea's Singleton Hospital connected 6 September.

Now, aft 132 days successful hospital, the six-month-old is backmost location successful Bridgend.

Her parent Rachel Stonehouse, 28, said: "Imogen has gone done truthful overmuch and much than we volition ever spell done successful our beingness and she smashed it."

The world's astir premature surviving babe is thought to beryllium Curtis Zy-Keith Means from the USA, calved astatine 21 weeks and 1 day, 11 days earlier than Imogen.

Rachel initially went to Bridgend's Princess of Wales Hospital, conscionable days aft the sex uncover enactment for Imogen, with a bleed earlier her waters broke and she and her spouse Corey were taken by ambulance to Singleton Hospital.

"It was truthful scary," she said.

"The symptom was horrendous... I conscionable went into endurance mode for maine and my babe and tried to conscionable support breathing done the pain."

Imogen was delivered conscionable minutes aft arriving astatine the infirmary and was instantly placed successful a container successful an incubator to mimic the womb.

Rachel said seeing her new, tiny babe successful the neonatal intensive attraction portion (NICU), and taking successful her highly fragile and translucent representation was "like an out-of-body experience".

She said she remembered thinking: "This babe should beryllium successful my tummy but she's not. This foetus is present my babe successful beforehand of maine and I present person to spot each these radical astir me."

Rachel and Corey were told their babe had a people 3 bleed connected the brain.

Over the 98 days she spent successful NICU she overcame countless obstacles, including a bosom murmur, a pulmonary haemorrhage, sepsis and galore humor transfusions.

"She was poked and prodded each day, each time but I had to retrieve this was to marque her better," said Rachel.

Midwives helped Rachel to explicit colostrum and with their assistance she was capable supply bosom beverage for Imogen until it dried up astatine astir 16 weeks.

The infirmary housed the mates adjacent for 13 weeks to marque definite they could beryllium with Imogen arsenic overmuch arsenic imaginable and offered post-traumatic accent upset counselling.

On 15 January, Imogen was moved to the peculiar attraction babe portion astatine the Princess of Wales Hospital wherever she spent a further 34 days.

"It was the scariest clip of my beingness but I would ne'er cognize it due to the fact that of however astonishing the unit has been with maine and my family. They ever trusted maine arsenic a mum and my instincts."

Imogen is present home, but inactive requires oxygen and Rachel said doctors were blessed with her organs and she has nary show oregon proceeding problems.

Rachel said the crushed she went into premature labour was unclear, but she has been told she has a 40% accidental of it happening again.

For present she is loving each infinitesimal of being a caller mum and said she would beryllium everlastingly grateful to the NHS.

"When they accidental these nurses and doctors are superheroes successful scrubs they are not lying," she said.

"We wouldn't person got done everything we person without them all."