AJC.com > Iraq coverage > Blog > Archives > 2006 > January > 31 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USBaby Noor making progress
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A check-up Tuesday of Baby Noor, the Iraqi infant airlifted to Atlanta surgery on Jan. 9, showed she is making progress, hospital officials said.
Dr. Roger Hudgins, chief neurosurgeon at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, removed a tube that had drained fluid from the baby’s back, the hospital said in a statement. Noor is said to be in good condition and is healing well.
In a few weeks, Dr. Andrew Kirsch, a urologist at Children’s Healthcare, plans to examine Noor to assess her bladder function. Doctors have said a second surgery is possible to reposition her bladder and create an opening an inch or two below her belly button; urine would empty through the opening. The goal is to make life more convenient for Noor, who is paralyzed below the waist and has no control of her bladder and may have to wear a diaper for many years.
Born with a severe form of spina bifida, Noor seemed destined to die in a slum near Baghdad until Georgia-based National Guard soldiers took an interest in her. They made contacts and pulled strings that led to a rare trip out of Iraq for Noor, her father and grandmother.
Noor’s grandmother said she is pleased with the baby’s progress.
“It is a blessing to see Noor so happy now that her condition is improving with each passing day,” she said, according to the hospital’s statement.
Services »
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By angry
February 1, 2006 04:29 AM | Link to this
How much would that have cost the average citizen? Or more importantly, how much would it have cost a citizen of this country without the benefit of insurance? Seems that you can find some pretty cheap healthcare when you’re not legally supposed to be here. Complain to me when you get laid off and have some back problems of your own. Try covering those without insurance. God bless America! It’s a wonderful place if you’re from somewhere else!
By Moni
February 1, 2006 02:42 PM | Link to this
Where is Moni? I pray she is OK and her absence means she has returned home safely. Will there be more reports from Iraq? Or have we seen our last for this deployment? The troops aren’t home yet. No photos and no words.
God bless our troops and keep them safe. And bless those who support them and those who report about them.
By saddened
February 1, 2006 10:29 PM | Link to this
How can you blame baby Noor for being born with this defect. She is one of God’s children. God placed her in the loving arms of a soldier that could help her. WE don’t have much and have gone without a lot but I would not blame or deny this child relief from her birth defect. There are good docs in this country that help the poor and needy and do surgeries and give medical care for what one can afford but they are hard to find. No child should have to live with a birth defect because they don’t have the ability to pay for medical care. All people should get health care they need regardless of income or ability to pay. This is not a perfect world. In a perfect world all churches and synagogues and mosques and all people would be helping everyone else to get all the medical care they need. The haves would help the have-nots. This is not a perfect world and many make too much for the free clinics. We must just help one person at a time. Can you imagine what a great world this would be if all people who were needy regardless where they lived on this earth could get the loving care Noor is getting? But then we are not living in a perfect world and not everyone is willing to help those that need the help. God Bless America and all its people.
By WOW
February 2, 2006 01:50 PM | Link to this
Dear Saddened,
Thank you…and AMEN! This is exactly how I feel…you put it so perfectly.
By J
February 3, 2006 04:47 PM | Link to this
I can’t understand the bitterness about a child’s life being saved. My youngest was born with a birth defect, and we were able to get the surgeries and medical treatment he needed. Yes we both had to work extra and make sacrifices, but you just do what you have to do. There are so many charities and organizations out there who will insure that a child gets the treatment he or she needs. There are also places like St. Jude’s and Shriner’s Hospitals who will go to extrordinary lengths to not turn away a child. You don’t get that in other countries! I have nothing but praise for the Georgia soldiers who took the time to care for this tiny baby. Folks need to stop asking why everyone can’t get a freebie and be thankful for the miracle that brought Baby Noor here.
By "Momma" Kat Orr
February 4, 2006 02:57 PM | Link to this
The story of Baby Noor reminds me of this tale….
The Starfish (author unknown)
An old man was walking along the beach, when he came upon a part of the sand where thousands of starfish had washed ashore. A little further down the beach he saw a young woman, who was picking up the starfish one at a time and tossing them back into the ocean. “Oh you silly girl,” he exclaimed. “You can’t possibly save all of these starfish. There’s too many.” The woman smiled and said, “I know. But I can save this one, ” and she tossed another into the ocean, “and this one”, toss, “and this one…”