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Arlington, VA (LifeNews.com) -- Baby Susan Torres is doing well following her internationally followed birth last week months after her mother's collapse. The Torres family released a statement Monday saying Susan no longer requires artificial help to breath and is being fed without medical assistance. "Little Susan is doing extremely well," the statement read. "She has been removed from the ventilator and is being fed formula from an eyedropper." "She is strong and alert, and is doing better than any of us could have hoped," the family added. Doctors at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington said the prognosis is very...

London, England (LifeNews.com) -- A new study by British researchers finds that almost half of the unborn children who are born at 23 weeks into the pregnancy survive the premature birth. The results may prompt British lawmakers to move back limits on late-term abortions and could be used to strengthen laws in other countries. The study appears to confirm the thesis that advancements in medical science and technology are making it easier for doctors to treat babies who are born prematurely and to do so at earlier ages. Researchers at University College Hospital London found that 42 percent of the...

BRITAIN’S top medical ethics expert has urged doctors to let the most premature babies die, with treatment offered only in exceptional cases. Baroness Warnock believes Britain should follow Holland in setting an age limit below which babies would not routinely be resuscitated. She says this would prevent doctors competing for the “triumph” of keeping babies alive at increasingly young ages even though they may not survive in the long term or may be left severely disabled. Warnock’s comments were backed in part by Britain’s most senior paediatrician, who said the setting of a lower limit should be considered. In Holland,...

Having an abortion almost doubles a woman's risk of giving birth dangerously early in a later pregnancy, according to research that will provoke fresh debate over the most controversial of all medical procedures. A French study of 2,837 births - the first to investigate the link between terminations and extremely premature births - found that mothers who had previously had an abortion were 1.7 times more likely to give birth to a baby at less than 28 weeks' gestation. Many babies born this early die soon after birth, and a large number who survive suffer serious disability. Peter Bowen-Simpkins: 'termination...

Having an abortion almost doubles a woman's risk of giving birth dangerously early in a later pregnancy, according to research that will provoke fresh debate over the most controversial of all medical procedures. A French study of 2,837 births - the first to investigate the link between terminations and extremely premature births - found that mothers who had previously had an abortion were 1.7 times more likely to give birth to a baby at less than 28 weeks' gestation. Many babies born this early die soon after birth, and a large number who survive suffer serious disability. Peter Bowen-Simpkins Peter...

Having an abortion almost doubles a woman's risk of giving birth dangerously early in a later pregnancy, according to research that will provoke fresh debate over the most controversial of all medical procedures. A French study of 2,837 births - the first to investigate the link between terminations and extremely premature births - found that mothers who had previously had an abortion were 1.7 times more likely to give birth to a baby at less than 28 weeks' gestation. Many babies born this early die soon after birth, and a large number who survive suffer serious disability. The research leader,...

BEAUTIFUL tot Natasha Smith blows out the candle on her birthday cake - one year after surviving an abortion. Her mum Norelle Cameron, 25, was told she risked her own life if she did not have her baby aborted after 26 weeks of pregnancy. But baby Natasha was born alive and well but weighing only 1lb 4oz. And although she is still wearing clothes for children aged between three and six months, doctors say she is developing well. Yesterday, proud Norelle said: 'Natasha's doing brilliantly but she can be a little madam. 'This week she has begun sitting up by...

MOBILE, Ala. - A medical team at the University of South Alabama's Children's & Women's Hospital have closely monitored the progress of a newborn who weighed only 10 ounces at birth on Feb. 15. His parents, Phillip and Monica Whitlock, said tiny Malachi Andreas Whitlock is so far holding his own. "I feel he's got 100 percent chance of survival," his father said. They said they chose the name Malachi because it's one of the smallest books of the Bible, and Malachi means "messenger of God." "He's so small, and he's sent a message to us of what love is,"...

Kyrie and Brielle Jackson were born on Oct. 17, 1995, a full 12 weeks ahead of their due date. The standard practice, that time, at the Medical Centre of Central Massachusetts in Worcester, where the twins came into the world, was to place them in separate incubators in order to reduce the risk of infection. Kyrie's birth weight was two pounds, three ounces. She gained weight quickly and slept calmly. Brielle, however, three pounds lighter than her sister, had breathing and heart-rate problems. The oxygen level in her blood was low, and her weight gain was slow. On Nov. 12,...

A baby believed to be the world's smallest to survive has been allowed home after six months of hospital care. Rumaisa Rahman was born weighing 8.6 ounces (244 grams) at the Loyola University Medical Center outside Chicago in September. She was delivered by Caeserean section along with her twin sister, Hiba, who was only slightly bigger. Doctors say she has made very good progress, and is expected to lead a normal life. The twins were delivered 14 weeks early at just 26 weeks' gestation after their mother Mahajabeen Shaik developed pre-eclampsia - high blood pressure which can lead to a...

MAYWOOD, Ill. (AP) -- A baby born weighing less than a soda can and believed to be the smallest ever to survive went home Tuesday after nearly six months in the hospital. Rumaisa Rahman's prognosis "is very good," and she is expected to have normal physical and mental development, said Dr. Jonathan Muraskas, who provided care for the tiny girl and her larger twin sister, Hiba, after their births Sept. 19 at Loyola University Medical Center outside Chicago.

Abortion “rights” proponents are finding that their position is becoming even more indefensible because of the increased viability of small-sized infants. Proponents of abortion have always maintained that abortion — that is, killing babies — is not murder, but a “termination of fetal tissue.” And the legal system has upheld that viewpoint ever since the Roe v. Wade decision, even to the point of accepting third-trimester abortions and partial-birth abortions. However, recent events have called negative attention to the “logic” of the pro-abortion stance. On September 19, 2004, twins were born to Mahajabeen Shaik — not an unusual occurrence of...

FINDINGS Nearly half of all infants born extremely premature have significant learning and physical disabilities by the time they reach school age, the largest such study has found. Medical advances have allowed doctors to save earlier and smaller babies. Normal pregnancy is 37 to 42 weeks. Neil Marlow, a neonatologist at the University of Nottingham in Britain, and colleagues looked at 241 children about 6 years old who had been born between 22 and 25 weeks. They found that 46 percent had severe or moderate disabilities such as cerebral palsy, vision or hearing loss and learning problems; 34 percent were...

MAYWOOD, Ill. -- In this photo released by the Loyola University Health System, Rumaisa Rahman, is seen next to a hand a few weeks after she was born at the Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Ill. Rumaisa, whose parents came from Hyderabad, India, weighed 8.6 ounces when she was delivered Sept. 19. She is believed to be the smallest baby in the world ever to survive. (12/21/04 AP Photo/Loyola University Health System)

The world's tiniest surviving baby made her public debut at a US hospital, a wrinkled, but perfectly formed three-month-old who was the size of a cell phone at birth. Rumaisa Rahman weighed in at just .24 kilos (8.6 ounces) when she was delivered September 19 -- 36 grams (1.3 ounces) lighter than the previous record holder. Doctors said they waited to announce the record-setting birth of Rumaisa and her slightly larger twin until the newborns were nearly ready to leave the hospital, and until after it was clear they were healthy. The infant was delivered 15 weeks before her due...

CHICAGO (AP) — A premature infant believed to be the smallest baby ever to survive was called "a great blessing" yesterday by her mother, who is preparing to take the little girl and her twin sister home from the hospital. The baby, named Rumaisa, weighed 8.6 ounces — less than a can of soda — when she was delivered by Caesarean section Sept. 19 at Loyola University Medical Center.[snip]Mrs. Shaik, 23, developed pre-eclampsia, a disorder characterized by high blood pressure and other problems, during pregnancy. The condition endangered Rumaisa and her mother, prompting a Caesarean section at 26 weeks. Dr....

CHICAGO - A premature infant believed to be the smallest baby ever to survive was called "a great blessing" Tuesday by her mother, who is preparing to take the little girl and her twin sister home from the hospital. The baby, named Rumaisa, weighed 8.6 ounces when she was delivered Sept. 19 at Loyola University Medical Center — less than a can of soda. That is 1.3 ounces smaller than the previous record holder, who was born at the same the hospital in 1989, according to hospital spokeswoman Sandra Martinez. Rumaisa, her twin sister, Hiba, and their parents were introduced...

Tiny baby survives despite being born four months early 12/12/2004, 11:27 a.m. ET By BRAD FLORY The Associated Press JACKSON, Mich. (AP) — Jordan Robert Fisette entered the world with big odds stacked against him. Born a year ago Sunday and nearly four months early, the Jackson boy weighed just 15 ounces. He was cared for at the neonatal intensive care unit of the University of Michigan Health System. Everyone knew he was likely to die. Everyone, that is, except Jordan. Today, he is a small-but-feisty baby. "We realize how lucky and how blessed we are. There are so many...

Researchers have long been puzzled about why African-American women are much more likely than whites to deliver premature and underweight babies. Factors such as genetics, unequal prenatal care and poverty only partly explain why blacks are three times more likely to deliver very low birthweight babies (less than 3.3 pounds). For example, a substantial black-white gap persists even among mothers who have college degrees. Two studies published Monday in the American Journal of Public Health lend support to a new explanation: The psychological stress of experiencing racial discrimination is at least partly responsible for premature and low birthweight babies. Duke...

With 'Kangaroo Care,' mom's warmth cradles a young and delicate life By Nadia Borowski ScottUNION-TRIBUNE November 14, 2004 NADIA BOROWSKI SCOTT / Union-Tribune My introduction to "Kangaroo Care" dates back seven years, when I held my own tiny son, 2-pound-11-ounce Misha, a surviving twin, skin to skin on my chest in Orange County, while hoping with all my heart that my touch could help heal him. Those islands in time and space, when I felt his quiet breathing and visceral peace, I'll never forget. When I recently visited Sharp Mary Birch Hospital to see their Kangaroo Care program, I was...