He weighed barely 400 grams at birth. Born at 22 weeks gestation, young Oliver is one of the most premature babies to survive.
You could say that little Oliver is a true survivor. Born at just 22 weeks pregnant, he is one of the most premature babies ever born in Britain.
The story began a few weeks ago, when Cat Gomez and her fiancé, Tom Longstaff, heard the good news: Cat is pregnant with twins. The gestation was going wonderfully for the mother as well as for the babies, but one day, when the term is only expected in 4 months, the future mother fell ill. Soon, tests showed that Oliver was much smaller than his brother Joseph and their amniotic sac was beginning to leak. The doctors then made the decision to give birth to the little boys at 22 weeks. “A specialist told us that the survival rate for a single pregnancy born at 22 weeks was really low. Since they were twins, the chances were practically non-existent”said the father of the family.
The loss of one of the twins
The twins were born on January 13, at Royal Preston Hospital in Lancashire. Oliver arrived first, 12 minutes before his brother Joseph. “The boys were transported to intensive care in plastic bags to keep them warm and moist”explained the mother. “I needed surgery because my placenta wouldn’t come off and I was bleeding profusely. But I was terrified that I wouldn’t have the chance to meet the boys alive because I was in the operating room. .”.
“It was a miracle that they were born alive, but there were no false hopes. We decided to spend as much time as we could with them.”added Tom.
If Oliver was the smaller twin with barely 400g, he had fewer complications than his brother. Joseph weighed 450g but suffered from a cerebral hemorrhage, he died 4 days after his birth. Doctors said that if he had survived, he would have been severely disabled.
A real fighter
Deeply devastated by the loss of their child, Cat and Tom have gathered their last strength to help Oliver fight. They then focused on changing diapers and syringe feeding breast milk. “We had prepared for the worst, but Oliver was so combative.”said Cat.
In total, the infant spent 132 days in hospital. On May 25, Oliver was strong enough to return home.
Today, a little over six months after this terrible ordeal, the parents of little Oliver are now reassured: their little boy is doing wonderfully. He will of course be watched but he will be able to live a normal life.