From Deseret News archives:
Birth tragedy is preventable
Walk this morning is a fund-raiser for vasa previa
His mom, Michelle, had a condition called vasa previa, which if not diagnosed — and it often isn't — kills babies who bleed to death when vessels rupture during labor or delivery.
It's a condition that occurs when placental or umbilical blood vessels cross the entrance to the birth canal beneath the baby. When the cervix dilates or the membranes rupture, the vessels can tear and the baby bleeds to death. It may also occur when the baby drops into position for delivery, compressing the vessels and cutting down the baby's supply of blood and thus oxygen.
It's painfully familiar to Bryce and Miriam Gerritsen, who had never heard of it until their baby, Elle, died shortly after a vasa previa delivery last year. She was full-term and perfectly formed but couldn't survive the ruptured blood vessels. Her parents not only learned about the condition then and in the days that followed; they also learned the test to detect it is simple, though rarely used: a five-second scan with a color ultrasound that would show the faulty placement of the blood vessels.
Some 2,500 babies each year in the United States have vasa previa conditions. Screened for and acted upon, the child lives, as Kai did.
The Gerritsens have turned their sorrow over Elle into action. They started the Vasa Previa Foundation of Utah, including a Web site, www.vpfu.org, that has had more than 10,000 individuals visit from 37 countries. That's how Michelle Jackson and the Gerritsens found each other. The Gerritsens also launched a fund-raiser, "Elle's Walk for Vasa Previa" — this year it's today at 9 a.m. at Sugarhouse Park — that has brought families together to share what they've learned and meet others who have experienced vasa previa.
One of the greatest things, Bryce Gerritsen said, is they've been able to share the stories of people who learned in time about the condition and now have healthy babies.
Certain women are at higher risk, although the exact cause of vasa previa is a mystery. Women who should be examined with a transvaginal color Doppler ultrasound specifically to check placement of the blood vessels include those with low-lying placenta or placenta previa, painless bleeding, history of uterine surgery or D&C, multiple pregnancies and in-vitro fertilization, among others. The Gerritsens hope vasa previa screening will soon be the norm in all pregnancies.
When the condition is diagnosed, the mother goes on bed rest the last trimester to avoid labor. A C-section is done after 35 weeks. And the results are that 95 percent to 100 percent of the babies live.
Money raised during the walk is used to increase awareness of the public and the medical community and to buy medical equipment that's needed to detect vasa previa.
E-mail: lois@desnews.com
