Sheffield kidney patients welcome ‘miracle’ babies against the odds
19 November 2024
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has welcomed its first babies from women undergoing kidney dialysis in ten years.
Raegan Mlynek (pictured), 34, and Tendai Chisambara, 36, are only a relative handful of women across the world to deliver healthy babies whilst undergoing renal dialysis treatment.
This is because healthy kidneys must work overtime during pregnancy to keep the blood clean whilst the baby releases wastes into the mother’s blood stream. So, for women on dialysis whose kidneys do not work, pregnancy is even harder on the body, and more frequent dialysis is recommended to keep the blood as clean as possible.
Both women spoke of their joy of giving birth to their ‘miracle’ babies despite the odds being stacked against them.
'I feel so lucky to have had a successful pregnancy'
Raegan, 34, who lives with a chronic kidney condition, said her and her partner were “shocked and elated” when they finally got pregnant through IVF after trying for four years.
She began a slower, gentler type of dialysis at nine weeks pregnant to avoid the rapid change in body fluid, blood pressure and waste products caused by haemodialysis, which can otherwise be harmful to the growing baby.
“I started off dialysing three times a week but that eventually increased to five times a week with weekly bloods and weekly scans. My haemoglobin levels were so low I needed two units of blood straight away. After that I actually felt better than ever. I had been struggling with fatigue, breathlessness and headaches and now I was being closely monitored I felt amazing. I was so grateful to all the staff involved in my care as I felt in very good hands.”
On 25 April 2023, at 36 weeks and five days, she welcomed a healthy baby girl, Maeva - becoming one of the relatively few kidney dialysis patients in the world to do so in recent years.
“I feel so lucky to have had a successful pregnancy, I actually didn't realise at the time how rare of a situation I was in. I was so grateful to all the staff that were involved in my care.”
'The dialysis team were brilliant'
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Tendai, 36, became unexpectedly pregnant in spring last year despite it being practically impossible for women who have chronic kidney disease to conceive.
She delivered a healthy boy, Zane, on 3 January 2024, and, remarkably, has not needed dialysis since.
“I can’t fault the care I received. The dialysis team were brilliant as well. They answered all my questions and gave me the reassurance I needed.”
Dr Veena Reddy, Consultant Nephrologist at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said:
“Successful pregnancies in women on dialysis are extremely rare, and these are the first births at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals in dialysis patients in more than a decade. The level of care and coordination between several specialist teams including the renal team, dieticians, anaesthetists and the maternal medicine team at Jessop Wing has been phenomenal, and we are hugely proud to be sharing their inspiring stories.”
Pregnant women on dialysis are monitored very frequently by multiple health care teams including obstetrician, midwife, kidney doctor, dialysis nurse and kidney dietician.
The baby’s progress is also continually monitored with more frequent ultrasound scans to identify and treat problems early.
A review of dialysis in pregnancy identified only 584 women successfully giving birth worldwide between 2008 to 2014.
ENDS
