Miracle Baby Born at 23 Weeks Defies Odds

Trevor Froelich is a particularly lucky baby: he was born last August, weighing just over 500 grams at 23 weeks of pregnancy. Against all predictions, he survived. Now, as he celebrates his first birthday, Trevor has finally been discharged from the NICU and is going home.

"It's a complete miracle," says his mother, Becky Froelich from North Dakota. "The doctors and nurses worked so hard to save him. It's simply amazing." The doctor in charge of the NICU agrees with her. "We look at him and say: 'You're our little miracle'."

Tiny Trevor with a wedding ring around his leg

Trevor's survival is one of the growing number of cases where babies born at 23 weeks manage to make it. The journey was not easy: he was born unable to breathe, and with skin as fragile as a burn victim's. One midnight in September, the hospital urgently called Trevor's parents to the NICU, certain that their baby was near death. They rushed to his side – and he survived. Trevor later underwent both eye surgery and heart surgery to correct issues caused by his extreme prematurity.

Trevor was so tiny at birth that his father could fit his wedding ring around his son's little leg. Now he's leaving the hospital as a cheerful, communicative toddler weighing nine kilograms. He still requires oxygen and a feeding tube, but the medical team is optimistic that he will wean off these in due time. The family celebrated his hospital release and hopes to soon celebrate another milestone: in just a few weeks, they hope Trevor will become a big brother.