Marlene & Liam

Marlene Romo Franco was nearing the end of a normal, healthy pregnancy. Even so, as she prepared to celebrate the arrival of her first baby with family and friends, she was filled with anticipation.

Just shy of 31 weeks into her pregnancy, she began feeling tightness in her stomach and noticed it was unusually bloated. Something was very wrong. “I felt like I couldn’t breathe,” says Marlene. “I knew I needed to go to the emergency room immediately.”

Marlene quickly went to Huntington Hospital’s Nan and Howard Schow Emergency & Trauma Center. When she arrived, our team determined that there was a serious problem with Marlene’s pregnancy. Her baby had hydrops fetalis, a critical condition that occurs when a baby has an abnormal buildup of fluid in multiple areas of the body. Complicating the situation, Marlene had developed mirror syndrome, meaning she began to develop similar symptoms to her baby’s. In Marlene’s case, this manifested as polyhydramnios, or a buildup of amniotic fluid, which can be potentially life-threatening.

With Marlene’s condition quickly worsening, doctors performed an emergency cesarean section. Our team of medical experts successfully delivered baby Liam — and saved Marlene’s life. Liam was taken directly to our Level IIIB neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), which offers the highest level of care for babies who are sick or premature. There, he was fitted with tubes to drain the excess fluid in his body and deliver nutrients. Huntington Health neonatologists Jamie Powers, MD, and Talia Glasberg, MD, worked around-the-clock to treat him.

While Marlene recovered in our Mother Baby Unit, further testing revealed that Liam’s condition was caused by a perforated intestine. Our NICU team consulted with pediatric surgeon Steven Chen, MD, to determine whether Liam would need surgery to fix the perforation. Ultimately, surgery was not necessary, and thanks to the continued monitoring and advanced treatment he received here, baby Liam was able to go home after 95 days in the NICU.

“I’m so thankful for the doctors and nurses that took care of Liam,” says Marlene. “Because of their nurturing care, he didn’t need any medication when he came home and was even able to eat on his own.”

Marlene, a native Spanish speaker, notes how comforting our team made her feel. “I was worried I wouldn’t understand what was happening because we spoke different languages,” she says. “However, everyone made sure I understood completely, which gave me so much comfort.” Marlene especially appreciated the attention of neonatologist Carolina Zenobi, MD, who spoke to her in Spanish whenever she attended to Liam, as well as social worker Stephany Ortiz, LCSW, who kept her up to date on Liam’s condition.

Today, Liam, who recently turned one, is a happy, 27-pound boy who is meeting all of his developmental milestones. Marlene feels immense gratitude for the medical professionals who tended to him. “Liam is thriving today because of the expert care he received,” she says. “I’ll always be grateful to Huntington Hospital for saving his life — and mine too!”

Click here to learn more about our expert care for pregnant moms and their babies.