Over a period of six hours, Christy Newcomb required 57 units of blood--a supply that was immediately available thanks to the on-site DeGowin Blood Center. The Center is staffed by physicians, medical technologists, nurses, and technicians who have training and certification in transfusion medicine.

Quick thinking by specialists saves lives of heavily bleeding pregnant mom and her baby

As Christy Newcomb prepares for her daughter Kristianna's first birthday this July, she'll have more than one reason to celebrate--for her daughter's life and for her own.

At just 30 weeks into the pregnancy with her third child, Newcomb, 24, began severely hemorrhaging. Six weeks earlier, physicians had identified a placenta previa, a condition resulting from the abnormal location of the placenta in the uterus. As a result of this partial or sometimes complete coverage of the uterine cervix opening, Newcomb would require a cesarean delivery.

Although she had previously experienced painless bleeding as a result of this condition, the events to follow this time around would prove to be much more serious.

After an emergency 911 call, Newcomb arrived at Unity Health Care in Muscatine, Iowa, where A. Jothivijayarani, M.D., who completed two residencies at University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics--family medicine and obstetrics and gynecology--determined Newcomb's situation would require the University's resources.

Having already been to the High Risk Obstetrics Clinic at UI Hospitals and Clinics earlier that summer, Newcomb knew the seriousness of her situation. "I was just worried about my baby," she said. "I knew I needed to get to Iowa City."

Jothivijayarani rode along in the ambulance with Newcomb to Iowa City and called ahead to Marygrace Elson, M.D., an obstetrician and the physician on-call in labor and delivery that night, to prepare for their arrival. Anticipating difficulties in the situation, Elson, in turn, called in Joel Sorosky, M.D., of the gynecology team.

Upon arrival in Iowa City, Newcomb, still bleeding heavily, was rushed to labor and delivery where Elson performed an emergency caesarian delivery. Born 10 weeks prematurely, Kristianna was quickly evaluated by a team of neonatal physicians.

Meanwhile, the team performing Newcomb's cesarean tried to control her bleeding after the procedure and stabilize her. But the bleeding continued.

"She was bleeding so fast," said Tanya Oyos, M.D., who was heading the anesthesia team that night. "It was taking three of us to keep up with the

rapid blood loss." Complicating matters, as Christy was losing blood, her body was also losing its clotting ability, resulting in a greater loss of blood.

As the team worked feverishly to keep Newcomb alive, the situation steadily became more severe, prompting Oyos to call for the crash cart and prepare to initiate CPR. Before the team needed to begin CPR, however, Newcomb gradually became more stable, and the team transferred her to the main operating suite. There, she endured another five-hour surgery, eventually resulting in a hysterectomy in order to stop the bleeding.

Over a period of about six hours, Newcomb received 57 units of blood. "That's the beauty of being in a place like this--the amount of backup, the partners with expertise--it was a terrific team effort," said Elson.

When Newcomb woke after her surgery the next morning, she had a hard time fathoming the previous night's events. "I couldn't believe it," she said.

Neither could many of the physicians treating her. "We almost lost her," said Elson. "The outcome was just incredible."

After all that Newcomb endured, her healing time after that night was just as much of a surprise. "We fully expected a rocky course in her recovery, but she did beautifully," said Elson. So did her daughter, Kristianna, who came home from the hospital shortly after her mother.

"Everything is fine now. It couldn't be better," said Newcomb, who also recognized the quick thinking and teamwork of Unity Health Care medical staff and UI Hospitals and Clinics for helping turn her situation into a positive one. "If it wasn't for everyone there, it could have been a totally different outcome."

Thankful to be alive
Christy Newcomb and her daughter Kristianna return to the Emergency Treatment Center at UI Hospitals and Clinics, where they arrived a few months ago in desperate need of highly specialized care.