Doctors Give Tiny Preemie a 0% Chance to Live, 9 Months Later He's on Track for a World Record
A baby who was given zero percent chance of surviving when born has proven the experts wrong.
When Baby Richard was born at 21 weeks at Children’s Minnesota hospital in Minneapolis, he weighed less than a pound, according to WCCO-TV.
And now, the baby could be named the smallest baby ever to survive, now that his family has been contacted by Guinness World Records. Once he clears his first birthday, he could be added to the records.
“We know that babies born at 21 weeks usually have a poor prognosis, so actually the family was given a zero percent chance for baby Richard,” Children’s Minnesota neonatologist Dr. Stacy Kern told WCCO.
But his parents, Beth and Rick Hutchinson, never gave up hope.
“The first month they weren’t even sure he was going to make it,” Beth said in a comment posted on Children’s Minnesota’s website. “It was really hard. You knew in the back of your head [and] your mind that his odds weren’t great.”
Baby Richard was given a 0% chance to live, but instead he ended up breaking the record for the youngest surviving premature baby. | https://t.co/LqfLD7u6BH
— WCCO – CBS Minnesota (@WCCO) April 14, 2021
“We always had that fear, but deep down we knew that he was going to keep going, he was going to surprise everybody,” Rick Hutchinson said, according to WCCO.
The tiny child did that– and more.
Baby Richard was born at 21 weeks and was given a 0% chance of survival. He is now the world’s youngest surviving premature baby! Watch Richard’s story here.?
Kids like baby Richard need your help. Donate today: https://t.co/ySIoHGhRUD pic.twitter.com/cbf8RWbhoo
— Children’s Minnesota (@childrensmn) April 15, 2021
“Richard just surpassed everyone’s expectations again and again, and we have all learned a ton from taking care of this baby,” Kern said.
Richard had been the answer to the couple’s hopes for a child, but after a trouble-free beginning, Beth Hutchinson’s pregnancy ran into a complication
“I just couldn’t get comfortable, I couldn’t sleep. So I went to my doctor, and he said, ‘You’re going into labor,’” she said.
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“And at that time I wasn’t even 21 weeks. I didn’t know what to think. ‘He can’t come yet.’ I wasn’t even at the halfway point of my pregnancy,” she said.
Beth Hutchinson recalls looking at her son after he was born.
“It was so emotional just laying eyes on him. I cried for I don’t know how long because he was so little,” she said, according to KSTP-TV.
The doctors and staff at Children’s Minnesota joined the family in refusing to give up on the tiny baby.
“They are the ones who got us through it. They gave us the hope to keep pushing,” Rick said, according to WCOO.
And now, they have hope. The nine-month-old weighs 13 pounds.
“He was 10.63 inches at birth and now he is 24 inches long,” Beth said. “He’s definitely a miracle.”
His parents view every day as a miracle.
“To watch Richard grow and watch him develop into this happy little amazing person, there’s just no feeling like it,” Rick said.
Beth Hutchinson said that the moral of the story is to never give up.
“Richard is here because we wanted them to try, we wanted them to give him a chance. He’s definitely given us the drive to keep pushing forward too because he’s shown us even small things can be amazing and bold and strong,” she said, according to KSTP.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
