Low birth weight is a term used to describe babies who are born weighing less than 5 pounds, 8 ounces (2,500 grams). An average newborn usually weighs about 8 pounds. A low-birth-weight baby may be healthy even though they are small. But a low-birth-weight baby can also have many serious health problems.
Because most babies in the NICU are too small or sick to take milk feedings, medicines and fluids are often given through their veins or arteries.
Hypocalcemia is when a person doesn’t have enough calcium in the blood. In babies, it’s called neonatal hypocalcemia. Your baby can get it at different times and from different causes.
Hyperbilirubinemia happens when there is too much bilirubin in your baby’s blood. Bilirubin is made by the breakdown of red blood cells. It’s hard for babies to get rid of bilirubin. It can build up in their blood, tissues, and fluids.
Hydrops fetalis is severe swelling (edema) in an unborn baby or a newborn baby. It is a life-threatening problem.
Hypospadias is a problem where the opening of the urethra is not at the tip of the penis. With hypospadias, the end of the tube is lower down on the underside of the penis. Or it may be in the scrotum.
