CHICAGO -- After 140 days, Baby Eirianna is expected to finally leave the NICU at Mount Sinai Hospital on Wednesday.
Eirianna is the smallest patient to survive at the Chicago hospital, where she received critical, around-the-clock care since her premature birth about four months ago.
[Ads /]
"She was the smallest baby I ever took care of here," said Amanda Kim, a NICU nurse.
Mom Enitan Martins knew her pre-eclampsia would force an early delivery but she delivered at just 23 weeks. Baby Eirianna was only 13 ounces.
On Tuesday, she could feed and hold her baby - something she couldn't do in the beginning.
[Ads /]
"I'm just grateful ... It's been a long haul," said Martins, whose original due date was in January.
An average stay in the NICU at Mount Sinai is 21 days, and nurses often grow attached to babies and parents. However, they know that leaving is the best outcome.