Cold sore kills baby just 13 days old
A baby boy has died from the cold sore virus less than two weeks after birth leaving his parents devastated and warning how dangerous the infection can be.
James de Malplaquet and Sarah Higson’s 13-day-old boy Kit died after being diagnosed with herpes simplex virus (HSV1), the same infection which causes cold sores, last year, The Sun reports.
Kit was born in a hospital in the English seaside town of Brighton in September, 2017 via an emergency caesarean at 39 weeks.
Doctors performed tests on him and gave the baby antibiotics. However, they didn’t test him for viral infections.
According to the Kit Tarka Foundation, started by his parents, the baby left hospital eight days after his birth but returned the following day because he “wasn’t waking up at all and really struggling to feed”.
He was diagnosed with the cold sore virus and a blood test showed infection markers.
Kit fought and “got a bit better”, but on day 12 he had to rushed to intensive care.
“There they did everything they could to save him but it was too late and he died early the next morning,” his parents wrote.
“Standing by helpless as a doctor performed CPR on our baby’s tiny swollen and bleeding body is a memory which will haunt us forever.”
Parents had no sign of cold sore virus
Paediatrician Dr Patrick Davies described the cold sore virus as a “very dangerous infection” and added if it isn’t spotted “babies suffer multi-organ collapse”.
Ms Higson underwent a blood test, which showed no signs of the virus. Kit’s father also had no signs of cold sores either.
It’s not known how he got the virus, which killed him.
According to a study published in the BMJ medical journal in 2013, it’s estimated one baby dies in the UK from neonatal herpes every week.
Kit’s parents now hope to raise awareness for not only neonatal herpes but to also fund projects, which support research into all causes of preventable neonatal death.
