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Christa's Story
Christa at 1.5 hours old, 10th December 1997
Christa Charlene Giles - born 2.00pm Wednesday 10th December 1997. Identical twin sister of Charlene Angel Giles, stillborn. Both sufferers from Twin to Twin Transfusion Syndrome.
Day 1 - Wednesday 10th December 1997 At birth by C-Section, during week 25 of gestation, 3 months premature, Christa weighed only 679 grams, and had to be immediately resuscitated by the expert team at St. Mary's and transferred to an incubator in special care. Her first few hours were vital as Christa was suffering from anemia and slight hydrops around her stomach and heart. Her excess fluid was drained to give her diaphragm space to work. Ultrasound scans showed no apparent swelling or heamorrage around her head, and all vital organs seemed in place. Blood oxygen levels were unstable so x-rays were taken of the chest to ensure that no other problems such as lung leaks were present. She was fed by drip into her umbilical cord and surfactant substitute was introduced into her lungs to help them develop.
Days 2 & 3 - Thursday 11th & Friday 12th December 1997 Still very unstable and in a severely critical condition, Christa was requiring 90-100% oxygen mix on her ventilator to keep her blood/oxygen level correct. The staff were having to operate at almost maximum to keep her alive with ventilation, nitrous oxide, blood transfusions, and several kinds of drug including morphine. Dr. Russell performed an ultrasound which suggested no internal head bleeding, but some abnormality was noticed around the cerebellum.
Day 4 - Saturday 13th December 1997 A blessing of Christa and her twin Charlene was performed by St. Mary's chaplain at Christa's bedside. In the afternoon Christa stabilised, and the oxygen level was reduced on the ventilator to 40%, a good sign. Signs were also that she was producing more urine, evidence that other internal organs were kicking in. Blood pressure was also up to a better level.
Days 5 & 6 - Sunday 14th and Monday 15th December 1997 No real changes, so Christa appeared to be stabilising. One of the drugs for her blood pressure was removed, and another reduced. On Monday Christa began trying to take quite deep breaths herself, and was under UV lights to help with jaundice.
Christa on Monday 15th December under the UV
Day 7 - Tuesday 16th December 1997 Today was a very good day, the kind thoughts and messages of support from around the world have obviously been working some magic. The doctors have been able to remove several previously required drugs, and reduce ventilation to nearer to normal levels. Christa's swelling has started to reduce slightly and she appears more stable. Still a long way to go, but it is nice to have some good news for a change. |
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