anyone's newborn undergo hypothermia therapy because of lack of oxygen?

[Anonymous]

I'm not sure whether this is the right forum for this question - apologies if it isn't.

My daughter was born two days ago with the cord wrapped tightly around her neck. She didn't have oxygen for some unknown amount of time and once they got her heart rate up and her breathing going they decided to use this hypothermia/cooling therapy that has shown success in reducing the long term effects of oxygen deprivation (I think neonatal encephalopathy is the official term for it? they said hers was "moderate" I think, and moderate to severe is where you use the cooling approach).

Anyway, I'd like to hear about the experiences of others to get a sense of what's ahead (good and bad). They did an EEG yesterday and said everything looked normal, but then last night she started having seizures that weren't being picked up on the EEG. Everyone seemed confused by that. They are doing an MRI in a week or so. The doctors are great at answering questions but you know there are those questions where the answer is just "every case is different." I'm kind of lost in the wilderness here and am looking for some different stories to give me a sense of the range I'm facing.

TIA.

[Anonymous]

Hi OP, I don't have any experience to share but I wanted to congratulate you on the birth of your daughter. I hope you get some helpful responses and I wish you both the best. You sound like a great mom.

[Anonymous]

Thank you, pp, that's very kind.

[Anonymous]

Yes, congratulations to you, OP, and I am sorry that you have had a scary time. I hope you get some answers soon that may reassure you and thinking the best for your daughter.

[Anonymous]

Not an expert, but I understand the results so far have been promising. Hypothermia kids do better with overall morbidity. Your doctors should be able to provide you with specifics. Sounds like your daughter is getting excellent care.

[Anonymous]

OP, another mom congratulating you. I do not have an answer for you because I did not go through that situation. however, my DD developed a serious ealth issue at 3 yr old. We did speak to the doctors (who were very good and provided all answers), but our situation was also a wait and see type of situation, where there was a very wide range of possible outcomes (from going back to normal, to having permanent retardation to even death), so the doctors kept telling us about what the situation was at the time and that we needed to wait for the various tests and, unfortunately, for time. I went online and started reading all kinds of stuff, it was awful, I almost had a breakdown. I eventually stopped doing it, just talked to doctors and simply taking it day by day. 4 years later, my DD is normal, and we are now starting taking her out of some medications. my story to tell you to stay strong, take care of yourself, recover from childbirth, and talk to your doctors, and be careful about going around to fnd those answers you really cannot find, because really every situation is different. sometimes preparing for the wqorse when the worse is not there and may never come may be very costly in terms of your sanity (this does not mean avoiding reality, but taking thingsw day by day). a very big hug

[Anonymous]

Here is a couple articles that talks about how effective it can be.

http://www.bris.ac.uk/research/impact-stories/2012/cooling-babies.html

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1474442211700163

Congrats OP!

[Anonymous]

Congrats! I agree with previous posters that it seems like your DD is getting appropriate care. My DS had a similar experience, but because his apgar scores weren't quite low enough the cooling therapy was never considered. By the time his seizures and breath stoppages became apparent it was already too late for the cooling. A couple of scary weeks in the NICU and we are still seeing a bevy of doctors and therapists, but the kid is a trooper and he is adorable to boot!

Keep your head up. Get sleep. And try to enjoy all of this time with your newborn, even if you're still in the NICU and it isn't quite what you'd expected. Congrats again and good luck!

[Anonymous]

No wisdom to share, I'm afraid, but I'm wishing you luck and rooting for your LO's recovery.

I echo what others say about trying to avoid Dr. Google right now - you'll drive yourself batty. (That's a do as I say, not as I do piece of advice - I can't pull myself off of Google when I'm scared about my pregnancy.)

Best wishes.

[Anonymous]

I don't know a ton, but my good friend's LO was on a cooling bed for 48 hours after birth due to lack of oxygen. He is 1yo now and meeting all milestones and doing great.

Good luck and hugs.