The photo above is of my son,
Conor Michael Williams who was born 16 weeks prematurely
at 1lb, 3 oz.

He's called a 24 weeker. As a preemie who spent 20 weeks (5 months) in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, he faced many obstacles. He was given a 30% chance of surviving. He's a toddler now and doing very well despite a few medical issues.

Some of the medical problems that Conor had to overcome in the NICU, and which are very common in preemies born at this gestational age, include:

Intraventricular Brain Hemmorage - Conor had two IVH's (Brain Bleeds). The one on the right side of his brain was Grade 2, the one on the left side was a Grade 3.

Patent Ductus Arteriosus - an opening in the heart that failed to close at birth. This opening usually closes in the womb during a normal pregnancy, but because Conor was early, his did not. The doctors were able to correct this with drugs.

Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) -- a disease, of which the cause is unknown, that causes blindness. Conor had Stage 2 ROP in his left eye and Stage 3 in his right. We were fortunate that Conor's condition eventually resolved itself without requiring surgery.

Respiratory Distress Syndrome - Conor was on a ventilator for 6 weeks. He continued to need oxygen to breathe properly for another 4 weeks. He now has Bronchial Pulmonary Dysplagia (BPD) and asthma as a result of the damage caused by the ventilator.

Necrotising Enterocolitis (NEC) - a bacterial disease that attacks the intestines. Conor had NEC 3x's, but it was caught and treated with antibiotics early on, thus avoiding the need for emergency surgery.

GI Reflux - Conor has had continuing problems with reflux that have caused him to vomit frequently. The reflux caused him to develop esophogitis which is scarring and damage to the esophogus.

GU Reflux - A condition that causes his urine to reflux back into his kidneys potentially causing kidney damage. He was thought to be going into kidney failure twice while in the NICU -- there is nothing that can be done to save a baby this small if the kidneys fail.

Apnea & Bradycardia - These are epsiodes of the breathing and heart stopping. He regularly had minor drops in his breathing and heart rates. This was usually regulated with the ventilator and with drugs. However, Conor "crashed" while in the NICU quite a few times. It was so hard to see him turn grey and limp and watch doctors and nurses resuscitate him over and over again.

Conor continued to have these episodes even when he came home. Then we had two monitors with us at all times to let us know if he ever stopped breathing or if his heart rate dropped too low.

Anemia - Many preemies are unable to make their own red blood cells at birth. Conor was extremely anemic and required 10 transfusions. He was lucky to have his Dad, Uncle Bert and Aunt Mary donate blood for these transfusions.

Hernias - Conor had three inguinal hernias that were all repaired surgically. He also had an umbilical hernia that eventually mended on its own.

Infections - Conor had a few infections that were all fought off with antibiotics. What would be a "simple" Urinary Tract Infection for a healthy baby or adult, almost killed Conor. While he was in the NICU, he had to have three spinal taps to test for suspected menengitis.