Infant Born 21 Weeks’ 4 Days Gestation

Kaashif A. Ahmad, Charlotte S. Frey, Mario A. Fierro, Alexander B. Kenton, Frank X. Placencia

After 2 years of monitoring a child born as a premature baby at 21 weeks 4 days gestation (19 weeks 4 days from conception), doctors stated:

"... we report the unimpaired 2-year outcome of a female infant resuscitated after delivery at 21 weeks’ 4 days’ gestation and 410 g birth weight. She may be the most premature known survivor to date.

This infant had multiple risk factors for adverse outcome, including prolonged mechanical ventilation, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and threshold retinopathy of prematurity.

She achieved discharge from the hospital on low-flow oxygen at 39 weeks’ 4 days’ gestation and 2519 g.

... It is known that active intervention policies at 22 weeks’ gestation improves the outcome for those infants and it may be reasonable to infer that these benefits would extend, if to a lesser degree, into the 21st week.

Ultimately, such limited data exist at this gestational age that the time may have arrived for obstetrical centers to begin systematically reporting fetal outcomes in the 21st week."

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