Please don’t let our preemies die!

Bengaluru: The deaths of four newborn babies at KIMS Hospital have shocked the entire city. Following the panic and speculation about lapses on the part of the hospital, the hospital authorities came out in the open and clarified its stand. They maintained that the infants died due to the causes for which they were admitted. They stated that all four children were suffering from different types of problems and the deaths were unexpected. Further, the hospital officials could not take up the port-mortem of the infants to ascertain the proper reasons of their deaths due to the lack of their parent’s approval. However, the health ministry has appointed a committee to enquire into the matter.

Despite the hospital’s efforts to prove its innocence in the incident, the parents are crying foul. Rajesh, husband of Rekha and father of a five-day-old female baby who died in the hospital says, “We were not allowed to see our baby the whole of Wednesday. We found out later that the baby had died in the morning but the hospital authorities chose to inform us only at 9 pm. We are in talks with our relatives and we will soon file an FIR.”

When Deccan Chronicle spoke to the other parents present at the hospital, they witnessed fear and panic among those whose babies were still in the ICU. The father of a five-day-old said, “My wife delivered after 39 weeks and till now she and the baby are doing fine. But I am really skeptical and scared considering what transpired a day ago here.” Another father says, “My baby’s weight is little low. Although the doctors say everything is normal and everything is fine, I am finding it hard to believe them.”

Dr Madhu Shankar, Administrative Medical Officer said, “All the four were high-risk pregnancies, of these three cesarean cases were referred to us from other hospitals. All the four cases had different issues involved, in one case the mother was suffering from hypertension and was brought in very late to the hospital. It is unfortunate that they all died on the same day. But there is no negligence or lapse on the part of the hospital authorities.”

The baby of Rashmi which was delivered after 39 weeks, died on the fifth day as the baby developed the condition of birth asphyxia. It is a medical condition resulting from deprivation of oxygen to a newborn infant that lasts long enough during the birth process to cause physical harm, usually to the brain. Then, the baby of Dhakshayini, born after 33 weeks, died on the eight day. In this case, the mother had hypertension and the baby weighed less and was undergoing intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). Rekha delivered her baby after 39 weeks and the doctor said that she was suffering from oligohydramnios, a condition where there was no water around the uterus; hence there was growth retardation of the baby. The baby’s weight was very low at birth and it contracted an infection called sepsis with IUGR. Lastly, Bhaghyalakshmi, whose baby died on the third day, was a diabetic. The baby started developing convulsions and finally died.

Dr Appaji Gowda, president of Vokkalinga Sanga says, “Though it appears to be that the children have died due to the health issues they were suffering from, we are still trying to find out if there were some unseen reasons for their deaths. We did want to conduct post-mortems of the newborns to find out the actual causes of their deaths but none of the parents had permitted us to do so.” He added, “Out of 1000 children, 40 children die every day. The infant mortality in this country has been high. Earlier it was higher. And the incidences of premature deliveries are increasing.”

Needed: Healthcare awareness for mothers, pre-term babies

The increasing number of deaths among infants have once again brought the questions pertaining to proper health care among mothers, care right after the birth and so on. DC speaks to city doctors to understand the ongoing situation.

Dr Sameera Reddy, Neonatology from Manipal Hospital points out, “Premature babies are easily susceptible to infections as their lungs are not matured enough, and hence it is very important that one maintains extreme hygiene and cleanliness while handling the baby. Many people should not handle them. Normally, a birth takes place after 40-42 weeks and with the advent of technology we are able to delivery a baby who is 26 weeks old as well. But even in the US, the survival rate is just 50 percent. The immunity of these premature babies is very low so we need to provide the utmost care while dealing with them. Any premature baby has to be kept in the incubator, smaller the baby, bigger the problems.”

Infection has been a major reason for death among premature babies. Elaborating more on the issue, Dr Vishwanath Kamoji, Consultant Neonatologist and Pediatrician from Columbia Asia says, “Definitely infection is one of the key reasons for the death of premature babies. As for birth asphyxia, aboard we follow something called TOBY where we cool the babies to 33.5 degrees C. We need to maintain the temperature for 72 hours. Babies who are cooled down tend to do better. However in severe asphyxia only cooling does not help. This has to be done in addition to other measures like infection control. The world has advanced a lot and more and more premature babies are surviving today.” He adds, “Many times there is infection in the bag of fluid where the baby stays during pregnancy. Sometimes, it can rupture. But with appropriate antibiotics we can prolong the pregnancy and also prevent infection in the baby. Prolonging the gestation means much higher chances of survival.”

Voicing a similar opinion Dr Rajiv Aggarwal, senior consultant Paediatrician and Neonatologist from Narayana Health says, “With premature babies we need to make sure of three things. Firstly, that the temperature is maintained. Then, the provision of a support system to help the baby to breathe properly as his lungs are not strong enough. And last but not the least, maintaining proper hygiene near the baby as he is more prone to infection.”