Thursday, September 20, 2012
Meningitis
Meningitis is a disease that causes inflamation to the protective membranes that cover the brain and the spinal cord. This inflamation is caused by either a virus or a bacteria. It a medical emergency that can cause death. When the infection is bacterial, medications are available. My daughter became infected with this disease at 2 days old. I was released from the hospital with what I believed to be a healtyh newborn. But one hour after being released I was in the emergency room with a crying baby. Her neck was stiff. Babies heads are wobbly and unable to hold it straight, but in my baby's case it was different. The first thing they had to do was withdraw fluid from the spine to find if a bacterial disease was present. After getting a positive result, they started medication through her foot. It was two weeks of hearing that she could die within the next 48 hours, to perhaps living in a vegetative stage to finally being released with a possibility of a hearing impairment. Only time would tell who severe her learning disabilities would be. But the medical field can only go so far and God will do the rest. Thirteen years later, she is a normal teenager with no trace of ever being contracted with a deadly disease.http://children.webmd.com/vaccines/meningitis
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Wow! I'm sure that was one of the hardest thing you've ever been through. I'm glad to hear that your daughter is doing well and has is healthy teen. Meginigitis happens when a specific bacteria is able to cross the blood-brain barrier and infects the brain. The blood brain barrier is another wonder of the human body and how even at the cellular level, it tries to protects us from harmful infections. I say tries because in certain cases, like meningitis, the blood brain barrier is not able to keep the virus out. Thank Goodness for doctors, scientists, researchers and everyone who was able to help your little girl. :)
ReplyDeleteWOW! Thank you for sharing your courageous story with us. I would not know what to do and I love that you listened to your mother instincts and took her back to the hospital. I am glad your daughter is now healthy. Doctors and the medical field are growing and learning of these things, but it is great to hear positive news came out of it!
ReplyDeleteIn other words a virus or bacteria can be a cause for meningitis? Can it be prevented by something simple like washing your hands? That is unfortunate, pobresita bebe. How come the doctors didn’t tell you anything about that situation? I would be scared if they were to tell me that but it’s a good thing that at the end she was able to go home. What an amazing story, God truly is great. Para dios, nada es imposible.
ReplyDeleteGroup B Strep was the bacteria present during childbirth. All pregnant women get tested for this at about 37 weeks and mine was negative. Therefore, no precautions were taken. This bacteria poses no harm to the women only to the newborn during childbirth. Penicillin can be administered for at least 8 hours prior to delivery to kill bacteria or a c-section can be done. For my other births precautions were taken regardless of the test result.
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