I lost my baby at just five days old because of a condition that went undiagnosed. Now with my second baby in hospital, I’m warning other mothers what to look out for

A Victorian mum who lost her baby at just five days old has urged all expecting mothers to take some simple tests early in pregnancy to avoid the same tragic outcome. 

Kirsten Radford’s first child, Alexander, died after less than a week in 2023 following a battle with severe preeclampsia.

The serious medical condition is a relatively common complication associated with pregnancy that can result in high blood pressure. 

After she fell pregnant again, Ms Radford and husband Daniel were determined not to let it happen again.

‘It was really well monitored this time,’ the 35-year-old told Daily Mail Australia.

‘Last time it wasn’t monitored at all and we had a lot of issues and it was missed completely. That’s why my first son died.

‘[With this pregnancy], from 12 weeks, I was on blood pressure medication and was heavily monitored. It’s definitely the reason he’s (got through to this point).’

Despite all the precautions, Ms Radford was still hospitalised at 24 weeks with her second baby, Harrison, due to placenta abnormalities and another bout of severe preeclampsia.

Harrison is slowly getting stronger but will need specialist care for years

He was eventually born a month later via emergency C-section and has been receiving care in a Melbourne neonatal unit since December 30.

Harrison also developed a lung condition and will need surgery for a hernia but is slowly getting stronger.

‘He’s had quite a few bumps in the road and is still on oxygen but he’s starting to do really well and is gaining weight,’ Ms Radford said.

‘He’ll have issues with his lungs for the first two years of his life and will be susceptible to chest infections and even the common cold which could hospitalise him.

‘His lungs could collapse and he’ll probably have childhood asthma so we need to be careful.’

Dr Prayatna Shetty is an obstetrician and maternal and fetal medicine specialist and she said many soon-to-be mothers were not aware of the dangers of preeclampsia.

The condition, which in unique to pregnancy, is an unprecedented and dangerous increase in blood pressure in the mother, which is passed onto the baby, and is potentially fatal for both. 

‘Some of the stories have been quite brutal,’ Dr Shetty said.

‘We know what starts it and how to predict it with biomarkers. The issue we are facing is lack of awareness.’

Harrison Radford is battling a number of conditions but is making progress in his fight 

Dr Shetty said the factors that increase the likelihood of preeclampsia include family history, smoking, obesity, high blood pressure and kidney disease.

She said treating it with simple aspirin in the first weeks of pregnancy to thin the blood prevented preeclampsia by about 70 to 80 per cent, but many women leave it too late to find out.

‘The aspirin medication needs to be started at 12 weeks and by that point most women are still with their GPs and haven’t even seen a specialist,’ Dr Shetty said.

‘By the time they reach a hospital or a private practice it’s too late and preeclampsia has set in.

‘There’s an 11 to 13 week scan where we can look at preeclampsia-related risk factors.’

Dr Shetty said any prospective mothers can get the scan along with a blood test to determine their risk.

Harrison still has a long road ahead of him and his parents have been travelling hours from their tiny town of Natimuk – 320km northeast of Melbourne – to get treatment for him.

That’s why they’ve set up a GoFundMe page to raise funds to go towards Harrison’s medical expenses.

Ms Radford said she won’t be able to go back to her job as a theatre nurse until next year as she cares for her at-risk son.

‘The costs are adding up. We knew after Alexander passed that we would be having a neonatal unit stay so we were saving up for that before we tried to get pregnant again,’ she said.

‘We put money away but we’ve chewed into those funds and our savings are gone and we’ve still got a lot to do in the future.’

The couple said they were hoping to raise $10,000 to see them through the difficult days ahead.

‘We have tried not to ask for financial assistance as long as possible, but we are at a crossroads, where we will completely deplete our savings just trying to get Harrison home,’ Ms Radford said.