Preemie born at 22 weeks goes home in ‘heartwarming story’

A baby who was born at 22 weeks has returned home after nearly five months in a neonatal intensive care unit in Las Vegas.

Baby Aaron weighed just over 1lb when he was born at Sunrise Children’s Hospital, and Mum Thelma Hernandez said it was “amazing” to have him home shortly after he underwent surgery.

She admitted she had expected her son “to come home with oxygen and with a feeding tube”, but instead he was doing “so good”, eating well, and was ready to breathe without assistance.

‘Real fighter’

Thelma said Aaron is “a real fighter”, and it is “a really big achievement to bring him home after all these months”.

Right to Life UK spokeswoman Catherine Robinson commented: “It is wonderful to hear this heartwarming story of how baby Aaron is such a fighter and made it home after nearly five months in the NICU.

“As the likelihood of survival for babies like Aaron, who were born below the current UK abortion limit, increases, this poses a direct challenge to the abortion law in Britain, which permits abortion up to the 24th week of pregnancy”.

‘Outstanding’

In Boston, a baby who was given only a 30 per cent chance of survival has also been discharged after five months.

Angelisse Rentas weighed just 1lb 4oz when she was born at 23 weeks, with her twin brother Elvin dying a few hours later.

Mum Ivelisse, who suffered five miscarriages after giving birth to her eldest son, said Angelisse “fought hard to be here and they fought hard to keep her around”.

Dr Jaclyn Boulais, the Medical Director of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Tufts Medical Center, said: “She’s not on oxygen. She has not had a severe intraventricular haemorrhage, she’s never had a single infection, she tolerates her feeds, she takes her full bottles. That is just outstanding for someone who was born as young and as tiny as her.”