Micropreemie, Born Weighing Just 1 Lb., Leaves Hospital After Spending 172 Days in a NICU 5,000 Miles Away from Home

NEED TO KNOW

• Afua, a mom of two, gave birth to her daughter Akosua at just 23 weeks while visiting the U.S. from Ghana

• Baby Akosua spent 172 days in the NICU, overcoming multiple challenges, including pneumonia and multiple reintubations

• Afua credits the Reston Hospital team with saving her daughter, as medical director Dr. Mariam Said calls her survival a "real miracle"

After spending nearly six months in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), one preemie baby girl was able to finally go home with her mother.

Last October, Afua was 23 weeks pregnant when she traveled from Ghana to the United States for her cousin's wedding. She originally planned to spend a few days in Northern Virginia catching up with close family and friends before heading to Houston for the duration of her visit. However, on the third day of her stay, she wasn't feeling well and went to the emergency room at StoneSprings Hospital Center.

There, doctors determined she was already six centimeters dilated and decided to transfer her to Reston Hospital, which specialized in delivering and caring for micropreemies. On Oct. 26, 2025, Afua's baby girl, Akosua, was born at just 1 lb., 1 oz., more than 5,000 miles from their home in Ghana.

Baby Akosua spent 172 days in the NICU navigating different challenges associated with being a preemie. From having pneumonia to being reintubated several times, the little one's journey wasn't easy. Being so far away from her husband and their 3-year-old child, Afua told Northern Virginia Magazine that the doctors and nurses who helped her during the hardest times offered her "so much comfort."

"Most of the time, you might have a partner to share this with, but my husband wasn’t around," she said. "To have the nurses and the doctors just hug and say, ‘It will be okay,’ offered so much comfort."

Eventually, after Akosua was born, her husband and their toddler made their way to visit the family's new addition. However, the siblings couldn't officially meet because baby Akosua was in isolation at the time. Dr. Mariam Said, the medical director of the NICU at Reston Hospital Center, who took the lead on Akosua's care, recalled Afua's family being "a joy" when they came to visit.

"[Afua’s] whole family was just a joy," she said. "And one thing I will say about this unit in particular: This becomes a family."

She added, “Even if you’re not here for 100 days, it really does become a family.”

Afua and her daughter were able to leave the hospital after their extended stay when the mom of two decided to have a G tube placed to help with feeding her baby girl. Said told the outlet that the medical device is "not forever," but serves as a "bridge to get her home."

“It’s a big decision to make. But at the same time, we know developmentally, being home with [her mom] 24/7 is the most beneficial thing,” Said shared.

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Last week, Afua returned to Reston Hospital for an emotional reunion with the neonatologist and nurses who helped her daughter develop. The proud mom said she was "thankful" to the care team, who worked tirelessly to increase her daughter's chances of survival.

“As much as I have fantastic doctors back home in Ghana, I think the majority of them told me that assuming it had happened back home, the outcome would possibly have been different,” Afua said. “For a 23-weeker, chances of survival back home would probably have been close to none. The infrastructure to support a baby [born that early] is close to nonexistent. The assurance I was getting back home was to be thankful it’s happened where it has.”

Months after giving birth to her daughter, the little one has now grown to 9 lbs. Afua, who intends to stay in the U.S., where she has access to the best doctors for the G tube, reflected on her experience, saying, "God sent amazing angels."

“God sent amazing angels when we had no idea it was her time to be on Earth, ... and they held her until she was ready to go home,” Afua said.

Echoing her sentiments, Said shared that baby Akosua is a "real miracle," as many preemies don't share her same positive outcome.

"We see lots of 23-week babies, and they don’t all have good outcomes," Said told the outlet. "I mean, she’s a real miracle."

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