# 31 weeks and low birth weight



## _Lexi_

I'll be 31 weeks on Monday and they're thinking about performing a c section next week. Ive been at the hospital 2-3 times a week for checks and ctgs on his weight. I also have low fluid levels, and there's a lot of pressure in the placenta where it's trying to work properly. At my last growth scan just over a week ago his estimated weight was only 350g. As he's not growing they think its best to get him out. They're not overly optimistic about his chances. Has anybody got any experience of a baby born this early and weighing this little? I know he'll be in nicu, but I don't know how long I can expect him to be in for. Would just really like some advice and reassurance about my little man x


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## Littlemo

I am really sorry your having a hard time I hope your little baba is well, your at a good gestation but I'm sorry I don't know much on the low birth weight I've been told that the growth scans are not always correct I really hope ur little one is well and grows some more for u ......my little ones was born at 27 weeks and weighted 1180kg which was 2lb 9oz and 13 weeks early he stayed in the NICU for 9 weeks before coming home, we was told by the nurses to expect baby out at ur due date but every baby is different really hope things go well for u and your little man. xx


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## _Lexi_

Wow, 27 weeks is early. I cant even begin to imagine how scary it must be having a lo in nicu. Guess I'm about to find out. Just hoping he's had a bit of a growth spurt. I know the gestation is ok, but it's just how small he is. The consultant told me that it's unlikely for babies under 375g to survive, but just got to stay positive and hope for the best. Thank you so much for replying xx


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## Sam182

I'm really sorry to hear what you're going through. I had my little man at 27 weeks and he weighed 880g (1lb 15oz) which was regarded as a low birth weight. I hope that they are wrong about his weight as he sounds so small. Hope you get on well and keep us updated x

Oh and my LO is still in special care 10 weeks down the line and we expect him home in the next few weeks


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## xxClaire_24xx

_Lexi_ said:


> I'll be 31 weeks on Monday and they're thinking about performing a c section next week. Ive been at the hospital 2-3 times a week for checks and ctgs on his weight. I also have low fluid levels, and there's a lot of pressure in the placenta where it's trying to work properly. At my last growth scan just over a week ago his estimated weight was only 350g. As he's not growing they think its best to get him out. They're not overly optimistic about his chances. Has anybody got any experience of a baby born this early and weighing this little? I know he'll be in nicu, but I don't know how long I can expect him to be in for. Would just really like some advice and reassurance about my little man x

hi i had exactly the same prob as you and was in and out from week 22 and they thought that ellie might have had edwards syndrome or pacauds syndrome, ellie was delivered at just under 32 weeks and the said from scans she was a little under 2lbs and she came out at 4lbs 3oz but they weighed her wrong and weighed her again that night and she was 3lbs so much better than they thought, have you had steroid injections, ellie never needed help with her breathing and was only in for 10 week xx


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## Poorah

When I was diagnosed with pre-eclampsia I had a growth scan which guestimated M would be 950g. I was terrified as I knew this was very small for the gestational age. She was delivered at 30+3 weighing 1150g, so a good bit heavier than the scan predicted. I suspect when they are tiny there is a quite a margin of error in the weights predicted. 
If I were you, just ignore the weight thing. Baby will come out and everything that can be done to help your baby survive and thrive will be done. We're eight months down the line and I have a happy but tiny baby girl with no discernible long term issues. I've got everything crossed for the happiest outcome possible.


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## _Lexi_

Thank you everyone for sharing your stories with me. I'm seeing a specialist tomorrow, hopefully my lo has gained a bit of weight in the past 2 weeks and will be in a more stable condition. I should be having the steroid injections thus week or next, depends on when they decide to get him out. I'm terrified of a c section :( but I know it's best for him x


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## xxClaire_24xx

_Lexi_ said:


> Thank you everyone for sharing your stories with me. I'm seeing a specialist tomorrow, hopefully my lo has gained a bit of weight in the past 2 weeks and will be in a more stable condition. I should be having the steroid injections thus week or next, depends on when they decide to get him out. I'm terrified of a c section :( but I know it's best for him x

i had 2 lots of steroid injections one at 24 weeks when we knew there was probs "just incase" she had to be delivered and one the night before section xx


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## funkym

Hiya so sorry you're going through this and hope everything goes well! Babies are so tough!! My little girl was born last week at 31 weeks due to preclampsia and she weighed 4lbs 1oz not sure what that is in kg and she's still in special care xx


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## _Lexi_

Think it's about 1800grams?? Not entirely sure though!! Hope she's out of special care soon. At 350g, he's not even 1lb :( seeing the specialist tomorrow, hopefully he's put in a bit of weight. Really hope your little girl is home with you soon x


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## xxClaire_24xx

hi have you been to the hospital yet xx


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## _Lexi_

Just got home. He has grown, he's now measuring at 25 weeks...so still behind. They're not very happy with his trace, his heart kept slowing down, and my fluid levels have dropped again. Pressure has built up more in the placenta, and the blood flow is starting to be effected. His heart is larger than normal as its working harder to keep him going. He said whilst he's under 1000g, they want to keep him in whilst he's still growing as he'd struggle too much being born. I'm now at the hospital 3 times a week as he said the placenta failing completley can be very sudden. So I'm back Wednesday and again Friday. I had to have an ECG on my heart, and I've had blood taken from both arms checking for viral infections that could be affecting lo and they want to check my blood to see if my liver and kidneys are working properly. my pulse is erratic and I'm showing increased amounts of sugar and protein in my urine. x


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## xxClaire_24xx

_Lexi_ said:


> Just got home. He has grown, he's now measuring at 25 weeks...so still behind. They're not very happy with his trace, his heart kept slowing down, and my fluid levels have dropped again. Pressure has built up more in the placenta, and the blood flow is starting to be effected. His heart is larger than normal as its working harder to keep him going. He said whilst he's under 1000g, they want to keep him in whilst he's still growing as he'd struggle too much being born. I'm now at the hospital 3 times a week as he said the placenta failing completley can be very sudden. So I'm back Wednesday and again Friday. I had to have an ECG on my heart, and I've had blood taken from both arms checking for viral infections that could be affecting lo and they want to check my blood to see if my liver and kidneys are working properly. my pulse is erratic and I'm showing increased amounts of sugar and protein in my urine. x

this is exactly the same prob I had and same care too, have they gave you steroid injections yet if not id be asking for them wed. Ellie measured at 24 weeks when i was 30 weeks but she was delivered 6 days later at a good weight also mia was said to be 4lbs on the wed and born at 6lbs on the fri so honestly try no to worry to much about the weight, we had an amnio done and the blood tests done too, have they sent you to the fetal monitoring unit yet xx


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## _Lexi_

Fetal monitoring?? No steroids as yet, they keep mentioning them. Going to review it again on Friday. I had a cvs at 13 weeks after being given 1 in 20 chance of downs, hoping the bloods come back clear so I don't have to have an amnio. It's reassuring to know the weight can be off by that much!!x


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## Jen1802

My lo was born at 26 plus 4 and weighed 2lbs 4oz which is 1020 grams and was in hospital for 9 weeks and 2 days. I was told at the scan I had the day before she was born that she only weighed 800g so they can get it wrong! Keeping everything crossed your lo has had a growth spurt! xox


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## xxClaire_24xx

_Lexi_ said:


> Fetal monitoring?? No steroids as yet, they keep mentioning them. Going to review it again on Friday. I had a cvs at 13 weeks after being given 1 in 20 chance of downs, hoping the bloods come back clear so I don't have to have an amnio. It's reassuring to know the weight can be off by that much!!x

its a more detailed scan using heat etc tbh i cant quite remember to much about it as I was in shock by this point, ellie was head down and they thought she had no cerebellum and she had very little fluid around her so i had an internal scan to to get to her head more and had a 3d scan every 3 days. I can back 1 in 25 for for dons and then when they scanned me and ellie was so small ( a sign of down) they decided to do a 3d scan to look at facial feature and then they also said i carried high risk for edwards and pataus, so we went ahead and had the amnio, we just needed to know what we were facing and tbh the amnio isnt bad at all just carries a small risk of miscarriage

i am very surprised that they havent gave you the course of steroids yet which makes me think that they cant be too worried which is good

Also yeah the weight can be wrong so try not to worry xx


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## _Lexi_

I had the detailed scan yesterday. They said they'll give me the steroids when they decide when to get him out as they're most effective if they're done the same week. I've already had the cvs so they know it's not downs or anything chromosomal. Just after going through one invasive procedure, I'd rather not take the risks of having another with the amnio. x


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## Littlemo

really glad too see ur little man put some weight on ,i hope he carries on and all goes well for u, there was alittle girl in nicu next too r baby who weighted 650g .......try not too worry about ur c-section I had one with my 1st its over and done very quick, xx


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## Foogirl

It all comes down to whether they are better off out than in. At the moment your consultant has decided it's better for your LO to get what they need from you and I'm pleased they aren't rushing you. They will know how accuracy can be off with weights and sizes etc and whilst there is a continued growth, they will let your body look after your baby. If the growth stops, or at the point where LO will benefit more from NNICU care, they will take him out. Gestation means relatively little if the weight is low, but it sounds like your LO is heading in the right direction. Fingers crossed you can get him to a good weight and if you end up in NNICU, we are all here to support you.


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## winterbaby86

best wishes hun, i havent had a premature baby myself but read this thread and would like to wish you the best luck instead of just reading x


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## kelly6407

Hi mybaby was 28+6 weeks and 700g. The scan that morning said she was around 1100-1200g so they can't really tell u what actual size baby is by these things.

Hoping all the best for u Hun and baby stays in a bit longer and grows


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## felicitycp

My LO was born at 31 weeks, I had a growth scan the week before and their estimate was over a 1lb out. He was in 7 weeks. Sending you hugs and thinking of you x


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## JadeyB

Hi lexi,

I have followed your story a little and I just wanted you to know that I am thinking of you.

Praying for a positive outcome for you and you little man.

Much love. Xx


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## vermeil

oooh I wish I had found your post earlier! My son was born at 27 weeks because of a severe growth delay. He so was tiny he didn`t even register on the machines, even the top ones at our tier 4 hospital. He was estimated at around 450g. They decided his odds were now better outside so I had a csection. They were pessimistic as to his survival.

Well he weighed 570g, barely above 1 lb, the weight of a 23 weeker, 2nd percentile for size. You can read all of the details in my signature. I won`t deny it was rough during the first few weeks. But not only did he survive, he`s doing great and at 17 months corrected he`s showing no signs of his rough start in life - well except still being very small, but he'll catch up in a few years.

I was told again and again that even the top ultrasound technology can only guestimate the weight of these little guys. So that 350g could easily be a lot more. THere`s a big error factor in their estimates.

Good luck - send me a msg if you want to talk...thinking of you :hugs::hugs::hugs:


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## _Lexi_

Thank you everyone. made it to 33 weeks now and he's now weighing 1000g :) getting a date on Friday for c section, it will be between 34 and 36 weeks, I'm 34 weeks on Monday...scary!! I know he's still going to be tiny, but his chances have gone up significantly. Just got to hope for the best. Vermeil - 570g is so small, it's wonderful to hear that he's doing so well :) xx


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## Sam182

Great news :)


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## xxClaire_24xx

fab news and if you get to 36 weeks and they have the weight wrong and baby is healthy and 5lbs and above you could be home very soon (well thats the rules in our hospitals near us healthy and over 5lbs) good luck xx


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## Marleysgirl

I, too, wish I'd found your thread earlier - our son Andrew was born at 29+1 (I had steroid jabs at 28wks) and he weighed 638g, so one of the tiniest on here!! He's now 30 months old, still pint-sized, and doing fine.


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## Jen1802

Aw that's brilliant news! So, so delighted little one has gained some weight! xoxo


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## ihearttc

_Lexi_ said:


> Thank you everyone. made it to 33 weeks now and he's now weighing 1000g :) getting a date on Friday for c section, it will be between 34 and 36 weeks, I'm 34 weeks on Monday...scary!! I know he's still going to be tiny, but his chances have gone up significantly. Just got to hope for the best. Vermeil - 570g is so small, it's wonderful to hear that he's doing so well :) xx

Just wanted to say hope everything goes ok today. I see you're in Norfolk-I assume you're going to NNUH? The neo-natal team there are absolutely amazing. DS2 was born at 32 weeks in November 2010 due to me having PE. I had a growth scan done a week before and they'd estimated his weight to be just under 2lb...he arrived weighing 3lb 8oz so the margin of error can be quite high-there is no way he put on that much weight in a week.

If you haven't had a look round yet then please ask if you can go and see NICU? It really put my mind at rest to be able to know where he was going to go.

Feel free to message me as well if you like x


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## _Lexi_

Thank you everyone. C section booked for Monday morning. I'll be exactly 34 weeks and he's estimated at just over 2lbs. Ihearttc, was only just over 100g in a week, that's not much?? I had a look round nicu today at nnuh. I know they'll do everything they can for him and hopefully he'll be home sooner rather than later. Just so scared about the c section x


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## Maybe1daysoon

wow. dont have a preemi myself but just wanted to say that I am thinking of you. I know it will be hard but get lots of rest this weekend. Next week you'll be a mommy!! I also know that scans can be wrong with weight, my sister had gestational diabetes and they said that my nephew was going to be over 9lbs at 38 weeks... well they were wrong he was born around 6 lbs!


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## bek74

Good luck and I am sure all will go well with the section. Keep us posted


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## ihearttc

_Lexi_ said:


> Thank you everyone. C section booked for Monday morning. I'll be exactly 34 weeks and he's estimated at just over 2lbs. Ihearttc, was only just over 100g in a week, that's not much?? I had a look round nicu today at nnuh. I know they'll do everything they can for him and hopefully he'll be home sooner rather than later. Just so scared about the c section x

Nope hun I meant that if my growth scan had been accurate that my DS would have put on over 1 1/2 lb in a week to get to the weight he was born at...I probably didn't explain it very well! Just meant that those scans can be really inaccurate-I spent all that week worrying and worrying because they really scared me that he was tiny and he came out much bigger than anyone thought so have got everything crossed that your little one does the same.

Glad you got to have a look round-they really are amazing in there. Hope everything goes well on monday-will be thinking of you x


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## Fiestagal

Good luck for Monday.
My son was born at 34+6 weighing 2lb 11 1/2oz. He did well as he had the correct development for his gestation, just tiny. He was in an incubator just for warmth for 3 days, he didn't need any oxygen and was in really good condition. We were in for nearly 5 weeks and he came home near his due date. He was classed as just needing to feed and grow.


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## Littlemo

Want too wish u best of luck for tomorrow, try not too worry about ur section to much it will be over and done with before u know it, best of luck for the birth of ur little man keep us updated xx


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## xxClaire_24xx

just popped past to say al be thinking of you tomorrow all will be fine and just think you get to see your wee baby tomorrow xxx


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## Sam182

All the best for tomorrow x


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## Jen1802

Good luck for tomorrow, will be thinking of you's! xo


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## JadeyB

Thinking of you hon and praying everything has gone well. Xxxx


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## _Lexi_

Just thought I would update that my beautiful baby boy Joshua was born at 11.32am Monday weighing 2lb 7oz. He fought hard, but after 13 hours, peacefully passed away in my arms at 12.29am Tuesday. He was completely perfect in every way. He just wasn't ready for this world. xx


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## 25weeker

I am so sorry baby Joshua couldn't stay with you.

The next few months will be extremely difficult for you and your oh with a whole mixture of emotions and there is no right or wrong way to handle grief so try not to analyse or criticise how you handle things. I won't say it gets any easier because I am 2 years down the line and it's still hard but you do learn to live with the feelings and the tears become less.

Sands offer great support and they may have a support group near you.

Thinking of you and your family.

Fly high little Joshua xx


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## Lottie86

I am so so sorry to hear this :hugs::hugs:

I am thinking of you and your family xxx


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## Sam182

I am so so sorry to read this. My thoughts are with you and your family x


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## Marleysgirl

I am really sorry to read this. :hugs:


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## xxClaire_24xx

im so sad to hear your news, i really am, I have been waiting for your update, sorry i just dont know what to say xx


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## Jen1802

I'm so, so sad to hear this news Lexi,:cry: my thoughts and prayers are with you and your family right now. Heaven has gained a new little angel who will always watch over you all. :angel: xox


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## Foogirl

Such sad news. So sorry for your loss. xxx


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## mummyvikki

So sorry for your loss hun :(
Fly high little one xxxx


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## vermeil

I`ve been thinking of you every day, and so been looking forward for your update... this brought tears to my eyes. I`m so very sorry Joshua couldn`t stay here with you.

Sending you the best to you and your loved ones... You and Joshua will be in my thoughts


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## _Lexi_

Thank you everyone, a brief story of his birth and a few photos are on the stillbirth, neonatal loss and sids forum xx


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## Fiestagal

I am so sorry to read your update x RIP little one.


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