Baby joy for coma mother flown to Sweden

Published on Thursday 15 October 2009 22:07

A PREGNANT woman who was flown to Sweden for life-saving treatment after contracting swine flu has had a baby boy.

Sharon Pentleton, 27, feared for the health of her unborn child after she suffered an extreme reaction to the H1N1 virus. But the baby, weighing 6lb 9oz, was delivered by Caesarean section at an Ayrshire hospital on Wednesday.

According to reports, Ms Pentleton and her son appear to be fit and well, and nurses are happy with how they are doing.

Ms Pentleton, from North Ayrshire, became seriously ill in July, when she was six months pregnant. She went to Crosshouse Hospital, in Kilmarnock, suffering from severe back pain. She was initially treated for appendicitis, before being diagnosed with swine flu.

When her condition deteriorated and she slipped into a coma, doctors decided Ms Pendleton needed a rare treatment known as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. The highly specialised procedure circulates the patient's blood outside the body and adds oxygen to it artificially.

She was flown to University Hospital in Stockholm for the treatment.