Early Christmas Present

Our family, which is large, somewhat obnoxious and usually in each other's business....received an early Christmas present this year. A little baby.  My nephew.  My sister's little boy.  This baby is super special.  He's super strong.  At her anatomical ultrasound, my sister received news that her little boy had a condition called gastroschsis.

Gastroschsis is: " a relatively uncommon condition that occurs in approximately 1 in 5,000 live births. It is one of a group of birth defects known as abdominal wall defects, which occur very early in gestation and are characterized by an opening in the abdominal wall of the fetus.

Most cases of gastroschisis involve the intestine and other abdominal organs herniating (protruding) through an opening (hole) in the abdominal wall and spilling out into the amniotic fluid around the fetus. This opening is usually found to the right of the umbilicus (belly button). As a consequence, the unprotected intestine becomes irritated, causing it to swell and shorten.

The longer the exposure to amniotic fluid, the more severely the intestine can become damaged. In addition, as the fetus continues to develop, the tight opening may squeeze the blood supply to the intestine or cause it to twist around itself. Either of these consequences can cause intestinal blockage, loss or malfunction and lead to long-term feeding problems after the baby is born." 

--The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. 

Although we were realistic about the fact that he would be born with this condition, and that it was a very treatable condition, we were also aware that things could still go wrong. He could get infections. Part of his bowel could swell, die, or become blocked.  So we began praying for the best possible outcome--no infections, quick successful surgery, and strength for my sister and her husband....because it is difficult to see a tiny little baby in pain.  And I can only imagine how hard it is to leave your tiny baby in the NICU while you go home. 

Jesse's bowel was beginning to swell and look worse on ultrasounds.  Doctors decided to induce at 36 weeks.  He was born on December 11, 2013 at 2:01 am weighing 5 pounds 7 ounces.  He was strong and healthy, other than having gastroschsis. My sister even got to hold him before they whisked him off to the NICU. 

Later that same day, after he was hooked up to his silo, which allows the intestines to descend into the body using gravity, the doctor was manipulating the bowel causing Jesse to defecate.  Amazingly, this caused his intestines to fall immediately back into his body cavity. In this photo, you can see the silo bag....and that it is already empty because his intestines are back where they should be!

 The doctor said he had never seen anything like that before in this type of situation.  Usually getting the intestines to descend into the body cavity takes about 5 days on average.  Because his intestines descended almost immediatly, the surgeon was able to do the closure surgery on Jesse up the very next day. 

We are continuing to pray that Jesse has no infections and his bowel works without incident or complications.  We have so much to thank God for! Welcome little Jesse! We are all so glad you are here!