Baby girl that contracted virus after a kiss tragically dies
A baby girl that contracted a deadly virus after an innocent kiss has tragically died, her parents confirmed in a heartbreaking post online.
New mum Nicole Sifrit had spoken out about the dangers of letting anyone kiss your newborn, after her seven-day-old daughter Maraina contracted the herpes virus at her wedding.
Maraina had been fighting for her life but doctors at Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines, in the US, were running out of options. Sadly just after 8.40am on Tuesday, Mariana lost her fight against the virus and passed away in her father's arms.
"She is now no longer suffering and is with the Lord," Nicole, from Iowa, wrote in a Facebook post. "In her 18 days of life she made a huge impact on the world and we hope with Mariana's Story we save numerous newborns life. R.I.P. sweet angel."
This month was supposed to be brimming with joy for the new parents, but just two hours after tying the knot, Nicole and her hubby Shane rushed little Mariana to hospital where doctors discovered she had Meningitis HSV1, a strain carried by someone with the cold sore virus.
“We noticed that she had stopped eating and wasn’t waking up when we tried to get her to respond,” Nicole said during an interview with WhoTV.
While the common cold sore is a pesky and often embarrassing condition, it's realtively harmless for adults.
However, in new babies it can be deadly, not only because the virus spreads so easily, but a baby's delicate immune system isn’t strong enough to fight it.
“She immediately went downhill, within hours she had quit breathing and all her organs had started to fail,” Nicole said, describing the horrific moment their precious girl was put on life support.
According to Healthline, infants in the first three to four weeks of life are at the highest risk for having severe symptoms from catching the herpes virus.
It can cause infection in the brain and lead to a whole heap of terifying issues, including seizures, fever, irritability, poor feeding, and very low energy. It usually does not present the visible cold sore we're all familiar with.
Both parents have since tested negative for the infection, meaning the bub probably contracted the virus from a wedding guest – most likely from something as innocent as a kiss.
But what’s even more concerning, is that you don’t have to have an open sore to be contagious.
In fact, The Meningitis Research Foundation say many people carry the herpes simplex virus without ever realising they have it, and you can pass it on without ever having any active symptoms.
“Don’t let anyone kiss your baby,” Nicole warns.
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Once a baby is a few months old, herpes infections are not usually so dangerous, and adopting healthy hygiene practices when around newborns will help prevent the spreading of germs.
Mariana's family have set up a [https://www.gofundme.com/53bkun-help-baby-mariana.|Go Fund me] to help during this difficult time.
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