When do they stop?

[Srrme]

Elias is 34 weeks + 1 day (4 pounds and 12 ounces), and is still having desaturations and bradycardia. He was having 3-5 a day, but all of a sudden had 12-15 today (most of them happening within 2 hours). He had blood work and everything is fine, although he is a bit anemic (they're holding off from doing a blood transfusion because they want him to continue producing his own blood).

The nurse was talking about him "definitely" coming home on a monitor, but he won't be home for another 4 weeks or so! Will they seriously continue for that long?

When do they "normally" stop?

 

[AP]

Alex's stopped long past 34weeks. We were told she would need oxygeN and tube fed at home. but Dona on here advised me that they get to a point and suddenly turn a corner. (think it was like 38 weeks) and true to her word, Alex took a bottle and gave up oxygen

There's still plenty of time!

 

[katy1310]

Totally agree with SB22, Dona told me as well to wait for 38 weeks and we'd see a difference, and she was right! Sophie nearly came home on oxygen but suddenly 38 and a half weeks, all the desats, bradys etc stopped and she was fine.

xxx

 

[Srrme]

I sure hope so. He took an entire bottle today, and the desats and bradys are the only thing holding him back from coming home sooner rather than later.

 

[toothfairyx]

When we were in SCBU one of the nurses told me that the babies usually seemed to take ages to have improvements then would suddenly get their act together. It seemed to happen for us once J got rid of the vapotherm.

 

[ButtonJessie]

^totally agree with toothfairyx. Lola had TONS of desats and bradys, and she was a 35 weeker! She was having an episode about every 45 minutes, sometimes more frequently. All day long. Her chart was FULL. They were very worried, they gave her a lumbar puncture and chest xray trying to find the cause. In the end they decided it might have been caused by a small pneumathorax she had, which would heal itself, but preemies just sometimes have a lot of them without cause.

But like everyone else has said, one day she just turned a corner. It went from 28 major desats one day, to 8 the next, to 3 the next, then that was it. The nurses said it was like all of a sudden her body realised what it was supposed to be doing. I know it frustrating when one thing is stopping you from going home, but try to relax and know that he wont be on the monitor forever.

 

[bob2331]

Hey,

Harry used to be the bradie and desat king! Everyone used to scare the hell out of me and send me in to a panic but i have to admit, it was the monitors that made it worse! Once we have our discarge meeting at 35weeks (11weeks actual) we were told we would not get a monitor even though Harry was going home on oxygen. I was so worried i wouldnt know if he was desatting or brading but it was agreed from then on, he would have the monitor off and just be on a apnea mat. It was so much better, i relied on my judgement (and the nurses to start with) i honeslty think, sometimes, Harry wasnt desatting or brading, but he was always such a wriggler the lead was all over the place.

Harry has sleep studies at night and we watch that monitor so closely but still to this day, he has a few'desats' only down to the 70's but thats when he is screaming or kicking about, the doctors are not worried.

I think with premmies, each one is so special and different you just never know and we did notice with Harry, that he knew if he dropped his sats everyone would come rushing! He loves the attention.

All will be okay and soon you will have your little boy home xx

 

[toothfairyx]

Jamie also used to wriggle loads and sats monitor would beep. We were lucky as he didn't have too many bradys maybe just 1-2 per 24 hours and usually the beeping was enough to stimulate him. He had them more when we was off the cpap as he got tired but once on vapotherm very few and his monitors were turned off at 34 weeks.
They will stop. J's consultant said it is just something they grow out of so hang in there you will get there.