Gastroschisis is a very rare but very dangerous disorder in which a baby is born with her intestines outside of her abdomen. This is a defect that happens in the early stages of pregnancy. There are no known preventions. This birth defect happens in 1 out of 20,000 - 30,000 babies. Approximately 50-60% of babies with Gastroschisis are born premature. The survival rate of a Gastroschisis baby is 70-90%.
These statistics are very up to date. When Jessica was born in 1982, she was not expected to live. Gastroschisis was not a well known birth defect at that time. She was about 2 1/2 months premature and she weighed just over 3 pounds. She had to endure 3 surgeries before she was 6 months old and didn't get to go home until she was about 9 months old. |
