Bryan Health discharges youngest-born surviving infant in-hospital history

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – Last month, Bryan Health’s NICU cared for and discharged home the youngest-born surviving patient in hospital history.

Megan Phipps and her boyfriend, Dillon were pregnant with twins.  Based on Phipps’ previous births, the couple was expecting a normal pregnancy leading up to their mid-October due date.

Early in her pregnancy, Phipps began feeling different than she had with her other pregnancies.  After multiple visits with doctors and specialists, she was diagnosed with uterine didelphys, a rare condition where a woman grows two uteruses instead of one. Phipps had conceived a baby in both her right and left uterus.

Only about one in 25,000 women with uterine didelphys get pregnant with twins, one in each uterus.  Phipps makes up the one in 50 million chance that a woman can grow two babies in two separate wombs.

After just over five months of pregnancy, Phipps went into preterm labor.  Despite the doctor’s attempt to slow her progress, they were unsuccessful.

On Saturday, June 12th baby Reece was born at 22.5 weeks gestation, Reece was delivered over three months premature and weighed about a pound.  Riley, Reece’s twin sister, was born the day prior and sadly did not survive, passing away just 12 days after she was delivered.

Reece received almost a dozen blood transfusions, received a central line for a month, and was on a ventilator for 45 days.

Often, when infants are born as premature as Reece, they face serious medical issues involving their brains and lungs.  Throughout her time in the NICU, Reece progressed slowly and did not have any major complications.

On Tuesday, November 2nd, Reece was discharged home weighing a healthy eight pounds, five ounces.  Reece spent 144 days in the NICU at Bryan, the longest NICU stay in hospital history.

For the majority of her time in the NICU, an ornament of a baby in angel wings held her big sister’s ashes above her crib.

According to the Tiniest Babies Registry at the University of Iowa, Reece is the 26th baby known worldwide to be born before 23 weeks gestation and survive.  Bryan Health’s NICU is the seventh facility in the united states to discharge a baby born under 23 weeks gestation.

According to Bryan Health, their NICU team has cared for nearly 500 babies and their families this year.

Check back with Channel 8 for more information tomorrow as we learn more about Reece and her family.  The story and its visual content are courtesy of Reece’s Family, Bryan Health and Media Relations Specialist, Brad Colee.