Meet Our Mighty Hornet- NEC Survivor Fatima Isabel Sanchez

 "My daughter was born at 33 weeks. My water ruptured at 30 weeks and I was hospitalized since. The goal was that we make it to 34 weeks and then she'd be delivered via c-section. At 33 she had other plans. She was born as healthy as could be, she was breathing on her own and eating well (formula). They were hoping she'd be in the hospital for a week and then they'd let her go home. On her 4th day she was diagnosed with NEC. "We caught it early," they said.  

They started her on antibiotics and said they were hopeful she'd be OK. 33 weeks was older than your typical NEC cases so they said her odds might be good. After a week we were told the NICU she was at could not do more for her and she was transferred to the nearby Children's Hospital where a local doctor who specialized in infectious diseases would take over her care. 

They put her on antibiotic after antibiotic and platelet transfusions but nothing seemed to be working. She was scheduled for exploratory surgery at only 12 days old. They went in and found 3 perforations in her intestines. They removed 8cm of intestines and left her open for 3 days. They told us if her selling went down enough they'd reconnect her intestines and close her up. 

If the swelling didn't go down they'd apply an ostomy bag. Lucky for her the swelling went down and they were able to reconnect her and close her up. She continued on other antibiotics and she finally started to get better. They slowly introduced milk again and after 37 days that felt like 100, she was finally able to go home.

 She had several doctor appointments and follow ups but no major complications. Today our precious miracle is a strong and healthy 3 and a half year old".-  ~Beatriz Sanchez ~