Watch CBS News

Doctor At Cedars-Sinai Describes Birth Of Baby Still Inside Amniotic Sac As 'Moment Of Awe'

NEAR BEVERLY HILLS (CBSLA.com) — A premature baby born at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center while still inside the amniotic sac has given doctors a unique glimpse of life inside the womb.

The baby now 10 weeks old was born prematurely by C-section at just 26 weeks with the amniotic sac still intact: a true medical rarity.

"It was a moment that really did, even though its a cliche: we caught our breath. It really felt like a moment of awe," William Binder, a neonatologist at the hospital, said. "This was really a moment that will stick in my memory for some time."

Binder snapped the photograph with his cellphone before going to work on the baby born a full three months early.

The photograph shows the baby just seconds old. Until the bag was broken, the baby was still getting oxygen through the placenta.

"It felt like slow-motion but really realistically probably about 10 seconds that we had to sort of quickly pause and be able to do this, because at the same time, we want to get the baby out of that sac, start helping the baby to begin breathing," the doctor said.

The child's mother, Chelsea Phillips, didn't know her first-born had caused such a stir in the delivery room until hours later when her mom showed her the photograph.

"It was definitely like a clear film where you could definitely make out his head and his hair. He was kind of in a fetal position and you could see like his arms and his legs curled up," she said. "It was actually really cool to see."

Doctors said the baby is doing well and should be headed home in less than a month.

"Since the moment he was born, he's been a little fighter," Phillips said.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.