Kisses are a sign of affection, but in newborn babies, when their immune system is still very fragile, it is better to avoid them. If the person is healthy, there is practically no risk, but if he had an infection or an illness, the risk for a baby can be very high, even putting his life at risk.
Unfortunately, this is what happened to Mariana, a baby who died after contracting a virus that led to meningitis and ended her short life of 18 days. His parents, Nicole and Shane Sifrit, a newly married couple from Iowa, United States, warn all parents not to allow that nobody kisses their babies.
A very contagious virus
Mariana was born on July 1, and as happens when a baby is born she received visits from family and friends who were going to meet her. They kissed her, touched her and everything was normal.
A week later, precisely on her parents' wedding day, the girl began to show that something was wrong: I had stopped eating and they couldn't wake her up Despite several attempts.
They took her immediately to the children's hospital where they told their parents that had contracted HSV-1 meningitis, caused by the herpes simplex virus, the same virus that causes mouth lesions. "At two hours, the girl stopped breathing and all her organs began to fail," the mother told Who-tv.
His parents don't have the virus, so doctors believe that could have been infected by a third person infected with the virus by touching or kissing her.
Herpes simplex virus
He Herpes simplex virus (HSV) is very contagious and causes palpable ulcers or blisters around the mouth or other parts of the face, although there may be asymptomatic people who do not have wounds. Transmission is through direct contact with herpes or by contact with the saliva of a person with the infection, for example, through a kiss.
There are two types of HSV: Type 1, from which the girl was infected, which usually causes facial ulcers, but can also affect the genitals, and type 2, which usually affects the genital area, although sometimes it also affects the mouth. However, either of the two strains of the virus can cause ulcers in any part of the body.
Herpes simplex virus can also rarely cause meningitis.. Meningitis is an inflammation of the meninges (thin tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord) that reaches the central nervous system (CNS). Symptoms usually appear quickly and involve vital organs in a few hours.
Only 18 days of life
Although he was told on July 7 that they didn't expect me to survive 24 hours, the little girl kept fighting for her life day after day. However, on July 16, her mother shared her daughter's status on her Facebook profile. He had already severely compromised liver and heart, and suffered seizures.
"Don't let anyone kiss your baby"
During the time the baby was admitted, the parents' anguish was tremendous. They had a healthy daughter and got married, but those who should have been the happiest days of their life, ended up being a nightmare.
"For people who do not understand what we are going through, please read this story. If you can learn anything from it, DON'T LET ANYONE kiss your baby. This story is what I am living right now. Our princess is fighting for her life after being born 100% healthy, this has to be the worst nightmare I have ever lived! "
"It's very common to get the virus, but it rarely turns into meningitis," Dr. Tanya Altmann, a pediatrician at Calabasas Pediatrics in California, told CNN. And he added:
"The first two months after a child is born are very critical, since a virus can spread rapidly and cause serious illness in newborns."Adults can be carriers of viruses and bacteria, although they are not serious or show symptoms in older people, They can be very dangerous for babies, especially before two months when they haven't even received their first vaccinations.
Infrequent cases
Some time ago we echoed some similar cases of newborn babies affected by herpes, which although rare, prevention is always better. One of them was that of an Australian baby who died 24 days after becoming infected with the herpes virus while still in the hospital.
Another case was that of a girl who fortunately did not die, but was close to not telling. His mother, Claire Henderson, also posted his story on his Facebook warning parents that don't let anyone kiss your babies.
