We'll try and do a real post soon to cover some of the multitude of events, changes, and medical scares that Eliza has had over the last couple of weeks, but I wanted to go ahead and share this. We had a meeting with Eliza's care team (doctor, nurse practitioners, nurses, social worker, etc.) on Tuesday to discuss her care plan and get a better "big picture" understanding of where we're at and what needs to be done. While we covered a lot of important ground, this chart in particular really struck a chord with me. It shows how Eliza has grown (or not) since birth as compared to the typical development for babies.
One point of confusion for me (which I still haven't gotten a satisfactory answer to, unfortunately) is whether these growth curves are typical for micro-preemies for Eliza, as opposed to infants continuing to develop in the womb. The doctor said it was the same for both, but that just doesn't make sense to me - everything I've heard before says preemies just can't grow as well compared to staying in the womb for longer. I'd really like to see a similar set of charts that are specific to preemies... hopefully it wouldn't look as bad for Eliza?
Hey Heather, I know I don't usually post comments on here, but I do think about you quite often!
ReplyDeleteYour chart struck me as well and caused me to do some research. I found some charts, but nothing that showed me anything that made much sense. But one thing that caught my eye was this statement: "What is important that your baby shows consistent growth and development."
...Which she has recently. :-)
xoxo love and miss you!
-Ali King
Here is the chart that I found though, if you can make any sense out of them:
http://www.adoptmed.org/storage/Fetal-Infant%20Preemie%20Growth%20Chart.jpg
From what I can tell, and if I did my conversions right, Eliza is still under the bottom curve for premies, but not by much at all.
I know I'm not a doctor or in the hospital with you guys to know much, but I have faith and hope that she's doing well and getting better.
Hope this chart helps you understand a little better. ( I don't believe the Doctors either when they say that the curves are the same for both either...)
xoxo
Hi Heather and Glenn -
ReplyDeleteI work in the NICU at Nationwide Childrens Hospital in Columbus Ohio - Maybe I can put my hands on some literature re: growth patterns for you.
It was hard to tell from the chart what her current weight is (other than <1000gm).
I'll let you know what I find - take care,
Joanie
(formerly from Witherspoon Rd Athens, GA)