One pound baby gives hope to other mums

Poppy Huggins celebrated her third birthday in April after a difficult start in life when she was born at 25 weeks, weighing just one pound four ounces.

Poppy needed surgery shortly after she was born and was so sick that she could not be moved to an operating theatre, so surgery was carried out on the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.

Poppy’s mum Michelle Ashwell from Great Yarmouth, said: “Poppy is a lively little girl who keeps up with her elder brothers. She is attending nursery and doing everything we would expect. I wanted other parents to know that children can overcome these early problems and go on to have a normal life.

“When Poppy was born she developed a life threatening condition and needed bowel surgery. At the time, the surgeon said her chances of survival were less than 5 per cent. She defied all the odds and has become a happy, healthy child and now weighs over 23 pounds. We have received extra help to help Poppy with her eating and now she is willing to try every type of food.”

Mr AB Mathur, Consultant Paediatric and Neonatal Surgeon at NNUH, carried out the surgery in consultation with a paediatric anaesthetist and neonatologist. He said: “It is such a pleasure to see one of our young patients doing so well and Poppy’s progress is a credit to her family.

“When premature babies are very sick, moving them can be difficult when they are ventilated. For this reason we created a temporary operating theatre on the Neonatal Unit.