AIIMS Nagpur has discharged three extremely premature babies after nearly three months of intensive neonatal care, including an infant who weighed only 480 grams at birth and another born at 24 weeks of gestation.
Two of the babies were born at the institute and admitted to its Neonatal Intensive Care Unit immediately. The third was brought to AIIMS Nagpur on the fourth day of life in critical condition. All three required prolonged breathing support, continuous monitoring and treatment for complications associated with extreme prematurity.
According to the hospital administration, the 24-week-old infant, who weighed 600 grams at birth, is the youngest survivor by gestational age ever cared for in the AIIMS Nagpur NICU. The 480-gram infant is the smallest survivor by birth weight treated at the facility, the administration said.
The babies developed serious complications including patent ductus arteriosus, a heart vessel condition in which a vessel fails to close after birth; retinopathy of prematurity, an eye disorder; and bronchopulmonary dysplasia, a chronic lung disease. A multidisciplinary team managed the cases through regular observation and timely interventions as the infants gradually gained weight and strength.
“These babies were born at the very edge of survival, and every day of their journey was a triumph of teamwork,” AIIMS Nagpur executive director Dr Prashant Joshi said.
The third baby was born at 26 weeks and weighed 630 grams. The infant’s mother had travelled from outside Maharashtra to seek specialised treatment after the family had lost seven previous pregnancies. Doctors said the baby recovered after weeks of treatment and close monitoring and was discharged in good health.
Faculty members from AIIMS Nagpur’s neonatology department, including Dr Nishant Banait, Dr Sanjana Somanath, Dr Amit Kumar and Dr Arun Edwin, worked with resident doctors, nursing officers and support staff during the infants’ treatment.
“For infants this small, every gram and every hour matters. Their recovery was possible because doctors, nurses, and support staff worked as one team, and because the parents trusted us and stayed with their babies through the long weeks of care,” Dr Banait said.
Dr Joshi congratulated the neonatology team and said AIIMS Nagpur remained committed to providing specialised care to vulnerable newborns regardless of where their families came from.
