ZEBULON, N.C. ( WNCN ) — After losing their newborn son, a North Carolina couple is working to save premature babies from a deadly condition that many people have never even heard of, necrotizing enterocolitis.
Meghan and Cameron Parker said the first warning signs came at their 20-week ultrasound appointment. “We were just having an easy, smooth sailing, exciting pregnancy that just turned really quickly,” Meghan recalled. The ultrasound showed some concerns with their son’s brain, spine and bowels.
While a blood test eased their worst fears, their relief was short-lived. Meghan developed severe pre-eclampsia. Her blood pressure spiked to dangerous levels forcing doctors to deliver the baby, whom the Parkers named Titus, three months early.
“They’re like, ‘He’s super, super small. We have no idea what’s gonna happen when he comes out of the womb,'” Cameron remembered doctors telling them. They feared he might not survive the delivery.
“Titus really defied the odds,” Cameron said. The baby entered the world tiny, but full of life. “They cut the cord and then Titus just starts blaring out crying, which is huge because you know, he was only at 1 pound and 6 ounces,” noted his dad.
For a baby as small as Titus, every day was a battle. He went through surgeries and procedures, and even dealt with a perforated bowel, but he seemed to be doing as well as he could be. Then things took another turn.
He was diagnosed with necrotizing enterocolitis, also kno.
