It has been more than 24 hours since two-month-old Miracle lay on the surgeon's table for an intensive procedure to save her sight. While she is not out of the woods yet, medical staff reported that she is "up and about" like any baby should be.
On Friday, the baby underwent indirect laser surgery and intravitreal injections at the Eye Theatre of the San Fernando General Hospital to correct a severe case of Retinopathy of Prematurity (RoP).
RoP is a condition that occurs in premature babies whereby abnormal blood vessels grow in the retina, the layer of nerve tissue in the eye that enables someone to see. The growth can cause the retina to detach from the back of the eye, leading to blindness.
South West Regional Health Authority (SWRHA) communication manager Crystal Marcano said yesterday morning that Miracle was doing so well that she was expected to be transferred from the Intensive Care Unit to the Paediatric Department by afternoon.
"The baby is doing extremely well and she even had a feeding this morning. When she is transferred to the Paediatric Ward, she will continue to be under constant monitoring. She is due for another check on Wednesday by the Head of the Opthalmology Department, Dr Anil Armoogum to ensure everything is going well," Marcano said.
Miracle, who has never left the hospital since being born at seven months in November to her 17-year-old mother, was diagnosed with RoP on Wednesday. Because of the severe bleeding of her retina, she needed surgery in 72 hours after the diagnosis or she would have gone blind.
The surgery cost between $100,000 to $200,000 to do the surgery privately, but Miracle was rescued by Dr Ronnie Bhola, a vitreoretinal surgeon with the Trinidad Eye Hospital, who did the procedure free of charge. The SWRHA also postponed all elective surgeries to Monday so that the procedure could be done.