Harry, 8, Gloucester
Oxygen deprivation
Stephanie tells us about the complications following Harry’s birth
The Birth
‘Harry was born on 7th May 2008 in Gloucester Royal Hospital by a planned elective caesarean but there were complications with his birth and he was stillborn. The doctors managed to detect a heartbeat 12 minutes after administering adrenaline three times. He was eventually put on a ventilator and sent straight to NICU (neo natal intensive care unit). The doctors then quickly made the decision to send Harry to St Michaels Hospital, Bristol to receive cooling treatment. A team from Bristol arrived to take him and started cooling his body immediately for transportation to Bristol.’
‘His first EEG (electroencephalogram), a test that measures electrical activity in the brain, was carried out after the cooling treatment finished and showed there was no hope, which was devastating. He then had an MRI which also left us looking at a very poor prognosis for Harry’s future if he survived, which we were told was unlikely. The doctors and nurses prepared me and my husband to take Harry to a room where his life support could be removed and we could hold him whilst he died. We didn’t leave his side, we talked to him, read stories to him, stroked him and we were even able to hold him which was amazing.’
Coming Home
‘Harry had a second EEG which looked slightly better and he was then transferred back to our local hospital where he stayed for a little while longer. When Harry eventually came home we still didn’t know what the long term effects would be and we were always advised to be guarded about his future.
He was later diagnosed with having hearing loss in his left ear and a couple of years after that we found out he has hearing loss in both ears and so now wears bilateral hearing aids.
Although the whole experience was very traumatic for us all, we are extremely lucky to still have Harry with us now, aged 8. He lights up our day every day with his cheeky smile.
We will continue to support Sparks in any way we can as we know that without your charity it is unlikely we would be watching our son grow up into the happy and amazing boy he is and we are so proud of him.’
How Sparks is helping
Professor Marianne Thoresen was part of a research group that developed the first effective treatment against brain injury in infants – cooling to 33.5˚C for 72 hours. Thanks to this technique and the research already funded by Sparks, the lives of hundreds of babies, like Harry, have already been saved.
Despite their achievements, Professor Thoresen and her team think they can do better. Their goal is to test a new technique of administering xenon gas during the cooling treatment.
They hope to develop a safe and affordable treatment that helps babies to survive with less brain injury. By improving the effectiveness of this already successful treatment, this project will help to prevent even more brain injuries at birth.
Find out more about Sparks research projects into oxygen deprivation.