Babies are so small when they’re born, sometimes it feels like they can fit in the palm of your hand.
But when Matthew Riddle III was born, he really could fit in the palm of his parents’ hands. He only weighed one pound and two ounces when he was born.
When Matthew’s mom Jenevieve Cook was 28 weeks pregnant, doctors noticed Matthew wasn’t growing properly and they induced an early labor.
Matthew was diagnosed with a rare condition called microcephalic osteodysplastic primordial dwarfism type II (MOPDII), also known as primordial dwarfism.
He spent his first 98 days of life in the NICU. Before getting the official MOPDII diagnosis, doctors told Matthew’s parents his brain had stopped growing and he wouldn’t live much longer.
But nearly 3 months later, he was diagnosed with MOPDII and his prognosis is much brighter. “We were told Matthew would walk, he would talk, he would go to school, he would just be extraordinarily small,” Jenevieve told WLKY.
When they see Matthew, many people assume he is a newborn due to his small size. But Matthew is now 7 months old and weighs a little under four pounds. Because he is so small, most of his clothing comes from Build-A-Bear and dolls.
While things are looking up for Matthew compared to his first hospital stay, he is not in the clear with his condition and he will have a long medical road ahead of him, filled with hospital visits and surgeries. He underwent his first surgery to help prevent strokes and seizures this month.
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