WATCH ABOVE: A pregnant woman in Nebraska, who was in a coma and kept alive for 54 days, gave birth to a healthy baby boy before she died. Malorie Maddox reports.
In a rare case of child birth, a comatose woman was kept alive for 54 days and gave birth to a healthy baby boy before she died.
Nebraska native Karla Perez, 22, had learned to live with rheumatoid arthritis – and even managed to give birth to her first child, Genesis, without problems, despite being told having children could be difficult.
She arrived at Methodist Women’s Hospital in Elkhorn in February with a headache that had been getting progressively worse. She initially appeared to have had a stroke but doctors eventually discovered she had an intracranial hemorrhage, or brain bleed, and knew she faced impossible odds of survival.
But Perez’s life wasn’t the only one in jeopardy – she was 22 weeks pregnant at the time.
When Perez was determined to be brain dead, her family allowed hospital staff to keep her body alive for her son to continue developing in her womb long enough to survive.
“At 22 weeks a baby can’t survive outside of the uterus or outside of the womb and so if we were going to give baby Angel any chance of survival we were going to have to prolong Karla’s pregnancy as long as possible with the minimum being possibly 24 weeks,” Dr. Todd Lovgren, a Maternal-Fetal Medicine Doctor, told WOWT.
Only 33 other babies have ever been born this way, according to a report. Doctors were able to keep Perez alive for 54 days before her condition declined and a Caesarean section had to be performed.
Karla’s son, Angel, was born at 2 lbs. 12.6 oz. and has spent his entire life in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). An early respiratory issue has been solved and he is currently stable.
“Thank God. He’s doing very well. He’s growing and I’m very happy about it,” Berta Rodriguez, Karla’s mother, said. “I come to see him every day. I get him dressed, I give him baths, I change him, I hold him.”
A blanket with his mother’s scent stays close to Angel, who’s very much loved by his family.
He’ll also grow up to learn that his mother’s last contribution to the world was heroic. Her organs were able to save three other lives.
“She left me two little seeds and part of her and of course she gave life to three more people, so I’m proud as can be,” said Berta.
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