# Newborn battles life-threatening condition at UK Golisano Children's **Published:** 2026-04-20T00:49:08.000Z **Source:** [University of Kentucky News](https://uknow.uky.edu/uk-healthcare/nicu-patient-proves-strength-isn-t-measured-size) **AI-generated:** yes (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) **Canonical:** https://feeds.lexingtonky.news/article/newborn-battles-life-threatening-condition-at-uk-golisano-children-s LEXINGTON, Ky. — Tag Peterson is only 3 months old, but his young life has already been marked by extraordinary medical challenges and the devoted care of specialized physicians at a regional center for critically ill newborns. Minutes after his birth, Tag's body turned blue, deprived of sufficient oxygen. Hospital staff quickly placed him on a ventilator, but the infant needed more advanced care. He was rushed to [Golisano Children's at UK](https://ukhealthcare.uky.edu/golisano-childrens-uk), one of only two Level IV neonatal intensive care units in Kentucky, according to reporting from the [University of Kentucky News](https://uknow.uky.edu/uk-healthcare/nicu-patient-proves-strength-isn-t-measured-size). Tag had been diagnosed with persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn, or PPHN, a life-threatening condition in which a newborn's circulatory system fails to adapt to breathing outside the womb. During fetal development, the lungs receive minimal blood flow because the fetus gets oxygen through the umbilical cord and placenta. After birth, blood vessels in the lungs should open to allow blood to pick up oxygen. In PPHN, those vessels remain constricted, starving the brain, heart and other vital organs of oxygen. "His little body just did not think that he was attached to me anymore, and he didn't make the switch," said Tag's mother, Brittany Peterson. "His heart and lungs weren't working as they should in an oxygen environment." At the [neonatal intensive care unit](https://ukhealthcare.uky.edu/golisano-childrens-uk/services/neonatal-intensive-care-unit), specialists led by Dr. Ashley M. Olszewski placed Tag on a high-frequency oscillatory ventilation machine, or HFOV. The device delivers rapid, gentle pulses of oxygen to gradually open the lungs' air sacs and blood vessels while preventing injury to delicate lung tissue. Dr. Hubert O. Ballard, director of ECMO care at Golisano, said HFOV is essential for the most critical cases. "HFOV is not 'old' so much as highly specialized," Ballard said. "We use it selectively when conventional ventilation cannot safely provide adequate oxygenation." [Ballard](https://ukhealthcare.uky.edu/doctors/hubert-ballard) estimates he sees 40 to 50 infants with PPHN each year, ranging from mild to severe cases. Tag's condition proved dire. At his most critical point, his survival chances were about 50-50, according to Ballard. The team considered placing him on ECMO, a machine that mechanically circulates oxygenated blood through the body, allowing the lungs to rest and heal. Meanwhile, Brittany remained hospitalized with preeclampsia, unable to be with her newborn. "It was just the worst feeling in the world — sitting in a hospital bed, by yourself, while your not-even-24-hour-old baby is in critical condition in another hospital," Brittany said. Her husband, Justin, was told Tag was the most critical baby in the NICU. After nearly a month of intensive treatment, Tag improved enough to leave the hospital. His recovery exemplifies the critical role that [Golisano Children's 81-bed Level IV NICU](https://medicine.uky.edu/departments/pediatrics/facilities), which serves patients from across central and eastern Kentucky, plays in caring for the most vulnerable newborns. [The hospital's NICU Graduate Clinic provides specialized follow-up care for babies who spent time in intensive care](https://ukhealthcare.uky.edu/golisano-childrens-uk/services/neonatal-intensive-care-unit/nicu-graduate-clinic), monitoring their development and health into early childhood. ## Sources - [University of Kentucky News](https://uknow.uky.edu/uk-healthcare/nicu-patient-proves-strength-isn-t-measured-size) - [Golisano Children's at UK Neonatal Intensive Care Unit information](https://ukhealthcare.uky.edu/golisano-childrens-uk/services/neonatal-intensive-care-unit) - [University of Kentucky College of Medicine Pediatrics Facilities](https://medicine.uky.edu/departments/pediatrics/facilities) - [Golisano Children's at UK NICU Graduate Clinic](https://ukhealthcare.uky.edu/golisano-childrens-uk/services/neonatal-intensive-care-unit/nicu-graduate-clinic) --- This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from University of Kentucky News, enriched with 2 web searches. The original source is available at https://uknow.uky.edu/uk-healthcare/nicu-patient-proves-strength-isn-t-measured-size.