Incredible Journey: Record-Breaking 420-Gram Baby’s Miraculous Fight for Survival.SHD

Curtis Zy-Keith Means boy from Alabama, USA, born in July 2020 will go down in world history, becoming the earliest baby ever born alive.

Curtis Zy-Keith Means was born at 21 weeks and 1 day. Initially, the pregnancy of Michelle Chelly Butler, mother of baby Curtis Zy-Keith Means is still progressing well and is expected to give birth at full term in November 2020.

But suddenly, on July 4, 2020, she had to be hospitalized urgently to undergo surgery. Thanks to the quick response of the team of experienced doctors at the hospital, Michelle “Chelly” Butler was forced to give birth early when she was only 21 weeks and 1 day pregnant.

At birth, Curtis Zy-Keith Means was seven times lighter than the average full-term newborn . The boy weighs only about 420 grams, about the size of a soccer ball.

Michelle “Chelly” Butler said: “I was very stressed at that time. Doctors say that normally they don’t keep babies born at that gestational age. They are not sure if the baby will live. The doctors have also told my family to continue to pray and wish all the best.”

Finally, a miracle came to Michelle Chelly Butler’s family to everyone’s surprise. Curtis was born and responded very well to the doctors’ treatment. Day after day, week after week, the boy became healthier. The boy had to undergo many months of treatment and intensive care.

Incredibly, Michelle Chelly Butler was pregnant with twins and Curtis was one of two lucky babies born prematurely. His younger sister C’Asya Means was less developed and did not respond to treatment at birth at 21 weeks 1 day. C’Asya Means died just a day after being born.

For most premature babies, born so early, the chances of future survival are slim. Curtis’s healthy growth and recovery is a miracle.

Brian Sims, a neonatologist involved in the supervision of preterm twins and who was heavily involved in Curtis’ subsequent treatment, shared:

“Looking at the time, the gestational age when the twins were born, no one thought the baby would survive. I was obsessed with the mother’s question if we could help give her baby a chance of survival. hers or not.

We have never taken such a young infant to the intensive care unit. We really felt like we had fallen into uncharted territory.”

Dr. Sims himself was amazed at Curtis’ resilience. “I’ve been working for almost 20 years but I’ve never met a kid as strong as him. There’s something special about Curtis ,” said Dr. Sims.

After about 9 months of intensive care, doctors released Curtis and returned home to his family in April 2021. The boy still needs medication, oxygen and a feeding tube, but his discharge from the hospital is an important milestone in Curtis’ extraordinary journey.

The boy celebrated his first birthday on July 5, 2021. Curtis has three siblings, all of whom help take care of Curtis with daily tasks such as bathing, dressing, and feeding.

Michelle Chelly Butler said: “He’s so positive, I’m so proud of him, I feel the difference every day. It ‘s a blessing to have this record .”

Colm Travers, director of the hospital’s golden week program for extremely preterm infants, said: “Survival at this gestational age has never happened before, the boy’s chances of survival are estimated to be low. more than 1%.

I still remember clearly the day he was born, how fragile his skin was. I am amazed that he still fought, responded to treatments and miraculously survived.”

Curtis was born exactly one month after previous world record holder Richard Hutchinson from Wisconsin, who was born at just 21 weeks and 2 days in 2020.

Before Richard Hutchinson, the record of miraculous survival of premature births had not been broken for 34 years. James Elgin Gill, from Ontario, Canada, was born at 21 weeks and 5 days in May 1987.