January 30, 2020 – 3:31 p.m.
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Infection can have serious consequences for young children
All she wanted was to give love to her baby – but the regular kisses from Laura Redfern had fatal consequences for her son Jon. The 31-year-old suffers from the herpes simplex virus, which usually only manifests itself in annoying blisters in the mouth area in adults. If young children become infected, the infection can have serious consequences. So also with the now four-year-old Jon. The kisses of his mother as a baby caused a bad infection of his right ear and a stay of several days in the hospital.
The ear swelled to twice its size
As Laura Redfern reports on Facebook, her son’s ear continued to swell to double its size. And Jon’s pain got so bad too. that he had to go to the hospital: “He was in the hospital for four days and was given four different antibiotics. He was burned, there were blisters, the ear bled. He could no longer lie on it.” Even if the infection goes away, Jon will have to deal with the consequences of herpes simplex infection in infancy for the rest of his life.
Herpes often manifests itself in infants and toddlers through inflammation of the oral mucosa, the so-called mouth rot. In the first few weeks of life, however, the virus can also spread to the internal organs and even trigger meningitis. In addition, the infection of the herpes virus in infancy means that infections such as Jon’s can occur again and again throughout life, which can, for example, result in sepsis.
“Wash your hands and don’t kiss your newborn”
“So if someone comes near a newborn, wash your hands and do not kiss it if you have cold sores that are sometimes not even visible. This can lead to brain damage and death in newborns, my poor baby must be underneath for that The rest of his life will suffer, “the affected mother warns other parents.
Jon’s mother isn’t the first to warn of the herpes virus
With her story, Jon’s mother wants to draw attention to the dire consequences of something as thoughtless and well-meaning as a kiss on the mouth. They are not the first. The little son of Lucy Kendall from Great Britain was infected with herpes in the hospital and also barely got away with her life. Jeff Gober and his wife from Phoenix, USA, were not so lucky. They had to watch their little daughter Mallory die helplessly.
Why is the herpes simplex virus so dangerous in babies?
The immune system in newborns is not yet as mature as in children and adults. If they are infected with the herpes virus, the immune system cannot fight it properly and the infection can even spread to the whole body and affect the internal organs and the brain. Here, cold sores can cause life-threatening infections such as meningitis. The herpes virus is particularly dangerous for babies in the first six weeks after birth. But even in infancy, as with Jon, it can still have fatal health consequences.
This is how you can prevent a herpes infection
Adults who have a cold sore can avoid infection:
- First rule: don’t kiss babies!
- Always wash your hands with soap
- Cover the blisters with creams or plasters
The vesicles are dangerous from the very first tingling – especially the liquid in the vesicles is highly contagious. During this time, parents should be careful not to kiss their toddlers or to only touch them with washed hands.
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