Baby's fight for her life with rare PPHN birth problem

Khloe's rare circulatory condition was diagnosed hours after she was born

Khloe McInally ticked all the boxes for being a fit and healthy baby, but just hours after her birth she was fighting for her life.

A rare condition meant Khloe's lungs were left filled with fluid and oxygen was unable to get around her body.

It was agony for mum Laura, who saw Khloe sedated and hooked up to machines - not knowing when she'd be able to hold her little girl again.

She told BBC Radio Scotland's Mornings programme how Khloe battled back from the brink, with the help of doctors in Glasgow.

Laura, 33, said there had been nothing to cause concern in any scans or in the moments after Khloe was born at University Hospital Wishaw.

She arrived two weeks late on 7 March, weighing 7lb 6oz, bringing delight for Laura, dad Kevin, and six-year-old sister Kara.

Khloe was on life support for the first week of her life.

"Khloe came out perfect, she did the big cry that all babies do, she passed all the doctors' checks," said Laura.

"There was nothing to alarm us, she was very alert she was feeding.

"But six hours later when I was in the postnatal ward she was violently sick. It was streaked with blood."

Khloe was rushed to intensive care after doctors identified that her oxygen levels were low. She was then transferred to the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow.

Khloe was diagnosed with Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN) and Laura was told that the situation was critical.

"We were in such disbelief, trying to get your head around what the doctors are telling you, because there's a lot of medical jargon," she said.

"It was such a surreal experience, watching your wee baby lying there on a ventilator completely sedated, hooked up to all sorts of monitors.

"Every day was trying to get your head around what was happening and how could this be possible when she came out so healthy."

Laura is delighted to have Khloe happy and healthy at home

PPHN occurs in about two in every 1,000 births. The cause is not always known, but neonatal doctors are trained to deal with the condition.

Dr Neil Patel, neonatologist at the Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow, said being born is "the biggest change in our lives" in terms of our body and circulation.

He said: "It relies on a baby's lungs starting to work for the first time, and their blood flow getting up to their lungs to pick up oxygen, and their heart pumping that blood throughout the body.

"Most babies do that perfectly well, but there are a number of babies who for a variety of reasons don't make that change as well as they should.

"It can be a really serious condition, and can be life threatening in the most severe cases."

Khloe spent the first week of her life sedated on life-support. Medical staff would carefully move her every few hours to avoid sores.

What is PPHN?

• In the womb, babies do not use their lungs to breathe as they receive oxygen from mum. The lungs are filled with amniotic fluid and blood vessels from the heart to the lungs are closed.

• At birth babies take a big breath, their lungs fill with air and the blood vessels open - allowing oxygen from the lungs to the heart and rest of the body.

• If a problem interferes with this process, blood vessels may not open properly and the body will not get enough oxygen.

There were no family visits and Laura and Kevin, who live in Motherwell, could not hold their baby. A gentle hand on Khloe's body was the only contact they could have.

"We weren't allowed to stroke or rub her because the doctors didn't want her getting too excited," Laura added.

"They were trying to stabilise her heart rhythm and keep her calm. You could just put a hand in the wee incubator and place it on her body.

"But you didn't want to do that too much, you were frightened that anything was going to harm her more, because she was so delicate."

Little Khloe has fought back to health after a challenging few months for the family.

Eventually Khloe's condition began to improve and she opened her eyes. On Mother's Day Laura was finally able to hold her in her arms.

After an anxious two weeks in hospital she was allowed to go home. But PPHN brought further challenges for mum and dad in the first few months of Khloe's life.

Laura added: "When she was crying we were panicking about the extent of it, in case it was putting extra pressure on here lungs.

"If she was laughing or getting too excited we were trying to calm her down. All this stuff you shouldn't do, you should let babies have fun.

"For six months of her life we were on edge, we were treating her so delicately."

Now seven months old, Khloe is fit and healthy. She also had a small hole in her heart, unrelated to PPHN, which has healed.

Laura said Khloe is hitting all her baby milestones, she's sociable, she's crawling and the whole family is delighted.

"She's perfect now, you really wouldn't know she'd had such a bad start."