Redlands "Miracle Baby" Celebrates First Birthday with a Visit to Medical Team that Saved Him

Just 22 weeks when born, child and family returned to Redlands Community Hospital on Thursday, July 16 at noon to visit NICU doctors and nurses who saved their pre-term baby’s life. Told that her child would have a five percent chance of survival, Kristy Thiem, 33, of Redlands said nothing would stop her from convincing doctors to save her son’s life. Born dangerously pre-term at 22 weeks on July 19, 2014 at just over a pound, Dr. Joseph Awadalla, neonatal specialist at Redlands Community Hospital, delivered the child with one hand. Upon his arrival, baby Logan let out cries that signaled to the medical team that he was strong enough for surgical intervention. Logan was given a kiss from his mother, then a medical team of nearly 10 began working to save his life. Logan would spend the next two weeks at Redlands Community Hospital before being transferred to another medical facility. Five months later, on Dec. 19, Thiem took her son home for the first time. “It was the best Christmas present in my life,” said Thiem. "He’s saved my life just as much as I tried to save his.” Logan Thiem-Nelson, who will turn one on Sunday, July 19, returned to the Redlands Community Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) Thursday, July 16 to visit Dr. Joseph Awadalla and the medical team that saved his life. Premature babies born at 22 weeks are more likely to survive outside the womb than previously thought, according to new research. A study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, looked at nearly 5,000 babies born before 27 weeks of gestation and found that a significant number of babies who were born at 22 weeks, just over five months of gestation, survived after being medically treated in a hospital. Previously, 22 weeks was considered too early to resuscitate a baby because survival rates were so low.