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ST. LUKE'S TINIEST BABY ALL GROWN UP!
Looking at him today it might be hard to imagine Landen Eastburn weighed just 13 ounces at birth. The Walford teen turned 18 earlier this year and his parents marvel at how far he has come since he was born.
In March 2005, severe head and side pain sent Paige Eastburn, Landen’s mom, to St. Luke’s ER. She was diagnosed with preeclampsia, which is persistent high blood pressure during pregnancy. Landen was delivered early, via C-section after doctors determined Paige and Landen’s lives were in danger. He was immediately rushed to St. Luke’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
“Looking back, I remember being so excited to be pregnant,” recalled Paige. “And then you start having complications, but you usually don’t think, ‘is this child going to be, okay?’ You just think I must get through it and then everything will be fine, and we’ll go home. But we couldn’t go home. I was glad we were close to St. Luke’s, and it all worked out.”
“Landen was growth restricted,” recalled Dennis Rosenblum, MD, St. Luke’s NICU. “He was born at 25 weeks gestation and was small for a 25-week baby.
His size was the equivalent of a 22-to-23-week baby. He is the smallest baby I have cared for during my 30 years as a neonatologist.”
“The doctors told my parents I had a 2% chance of survival when I was born,” shared Landen.
“I remember seeing him right after he was born,” said David Eastburn, Landen’s dad. “He was so tiny. I recall thinking there is no way he will live. As a guy, you just want to fix things and I remember thinking, ‘what can I do to make it better?’ But there wasn’t much I could do. I just had to turn it over to the doctors and God.”
Cedar Rapids’ Smallest Baby
“When he was born, he was listed as the 52nd smallest infant to survive in the world and on the Tiniest Baby Registry,” said Dr. Rosenblum. “One of the things I remember most about Landen is that he seemed super resilient. Even though he was so small he tolerated everything well and just grew and grew. He had his ups and downs but gradually improved. It took about two months, but we were able to wean him off the ventilator. He initially went home on oxygen but that was to be expected.”
St. Luke’s NICU has the doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, and technology to support even the tiniest babies like
Landen. St. Luke’s NICU is the only Level III Maternal and Neonatal Center in Cedar Rapids as determined by the American Academy of Pediatrics. It cares for full-term babies as well as very low birth weight babies. This means except in rare occasions, a baby should not have to be transferred out of Cedar Rapids if born at St. Luke’s. In fact, St. Luke’s accepts transfers from surrounding hospitals in Cedar Rapids and Eastern Iowa.
Landen spent just over four months in St. Luke’s NICU. The family was grateful for the care they received.
“We still get messages from some of St. Luke’s NICU staff,” said Paige. “They were great. They sat with me when we were in the NICU and talked me through some of the things I didn’t understand. And they celebrated everything. Every milestone for Landen and it was so encouraging to us.”
“They were a wonderful group,” David said. “They are excellent in what they do, and they were very caring. “
Even today, 18 years later, Landen still holds the record for the smallest surviving baby born in Cedar Rapids. He enjoys hearing the story of his birth but is glad the hospital stays are behind him.
“I am a sophomore in high school,” shared Landen. “I am homeschooled. I don’t like math, but I like science. I am pretty good at typing and recently started a job. It’s cool. I got a first paycheck and I have a bank card. I like to play video games, listen to music, hang out with friends, go bowling, swimming and am very involved in youth group at my church.”
Blessed & Grateful
“We’re just thankful,” explained David. “He should have a whole lot more health issues than he does considering where he started and everything he’s been through. At the time, it seemed never ending but what Landen has faced has been relatively minor compared to what he could be facing. He’s doing outstanding. We feel fortunate he’s done as well as he has.”
“We are blessed and grateful,” remarked Paige. “I remember before we had kids someone said to us, ‘the days are long, but the years are short.’ This is true but at times when we were in our day-to-day after Landen was born there was fear and uncertainty and the days seemed long. There were some big valleys but through it all we had faith.”
Find out why three out of four moms choose St. Luke’s Birth Care to deliver their baby. Our experienced labor and delivery nurses and NICU team are ready to provide expert care. To schedule your tour of St. Luke’s Birth Care Center, call (319) 369-8129.
