Surgery in the womb for little fighter Éabha, the 'miracle baby'

PARENTS THANK NOTTINGHAM MEDICS AFTER PIONEERING OP SAVES HER LIFE

- By OLIVER PRIDMORE

THE family of a “miracle baby” have thanked Nottingham hospital staff after pioneering surgery helped save her life while she was still in the womb.

First-time mum Eleanor Brannigan, 39, was just 27 weeks into her pregnancy with daughter Éabha when a private scan indicated a large amount of fluid in the baby’s body.

She went for assessment and Dr Magdalena Fiolna invited her and partner Adam Moseley, 30, for an urgent scan in her clinic. The scan showed Éabha to be severely unwell and in need of treatment to stop the fluid buildup around her lungs and body, which could have caused heart failure.

Dr Fiolna, an obstetric and foetal medicine consultant at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH), offered them several options.

One option simply involved monitoring and waiting, but would have likely resulted in more fluid building up.

An immediate birth could have been possible, but 27 weeks would be extremely premature and could have lead to potential complications.