The first 24 hours

Educational, not medical advice. If you have an urgent concern, call your physician or 911.

Module 3 — Delivery and the NICU · Episode 9

The first day is about stabilizing, not rushing to surgery.

In the delivery room

A baby with CDH usually needs help breathing right away, because the lungs are smaller and the circulation is under strain. A team is ready to support breathing immediately, often placing a breathing tube and a tube to decompress the stomach so air does not further crowd the chest.

Settling into the NICU

Over the first hours, the team works to keep oxygen and blood pressure stable using the gentlest effective support. They watch closely for pulmonary hypertension, the high lung-vessel pressure that is often the central early challenge.

Why surgery waits

It can feel counterintuitive that the hole is not fixed immediately. Repair is timed to when the baby is stable, because operating on an unstable baby is riskier than the hernia itself in those first hours. The exception is the ECMO situation described later in this module.

For you

The first day is intense and can be frightening. Ask the team to explain what each machine and number means; understanding the plan, even in pieces, can help.

Next in Module 3: Understanding ventilator strategies · Back to Module 3