Last Wednesday night Naomi and Jessie the Confinement Nanny were wondering why Kai had started sporting a few freckles and moles on his face and body. We had no idea what was to follow.
Thursday morning saw a few more spots on his face, some reddish, some brown, and there was a bruise on his leg. A diaper soiled by weird coloured poop confirmed a trip to the doctor’s, where we were told to walk across the road from Paragon and get Kai warded immediately because it was suspected that his platelets were low, and that those spots weren’t moles or freckles, but bleeding under the skin. A check of his mouth showed more red spots on his upper palate.
We were terrified, but probably not as frightened as Kai was as he was taken to the treatment room for an intravenous plug to be inserted in his wrist, and several blood samples taken from him before he was handed back to us in our room, bruised and all cried out.
About an hour later, the results came back, and we were strangely relieved he had tested positive for dengue.
The doctor explained that his platelets were around 10,000 units per litre (a healthy level is 150,000 – 400,000 units) and that a transfusion was needed.
It turned out to be two transfusions before his platelet levels climbed out of the danger zone, and he stopped being bruised everywhere we held him. Even the blood pressure machine cuffs bruised him on the first two days. Apparently, spontaneous bleeding occurs when platelets fall below 30,000.
I had never heard of an 8 week old baby getting dengue, and as far as we could tell, neither had the nursing staff at the hospital, who kept telling us that Kai was being kept warded because of the availability of resources such as transfusions and medicines. We knew that it was also because dengue had the ability to turn things awry very very quickly. And that’s for adults.
But. thankfully, by Sunday, things stabilised enough for Naomi and I to take a walk out of the hospital and have dinner while Jessie took over the watch for a couple of hours. But probably the most relaxing meal outside the hospital was the one we had at home on Monday night when we were all home again after Kai’s platelet count had hit 78,000 in the morning.
The scary thing was that Kai didn’t have a fever throughout the episode, and we were really lucky to have gone in to the doctor’s on Thursday instead of doing the usual and practical wait and see.
The NEA response to my request that the entire Singapore be fumigated was measured and calm, and I was told that our block was fogged last Saturday, and that ‘measures are being taken with the management committee to try to make owners of vacant units open their premises for inspection’.
Then again, it wasn’t as if our apartment complex was swarming with mozzies in the first place. We hardly get any bugs in our flat. And as far as we know, Kai sported only the one mosquito bite on Monday night.
That’s all it takes.
First signs: spots and a cut (from fingernail) that took a long time to clot
The intravenous plug – must’ve hurt
Not happy
Where they take blood samples from – we think Kai’s traumatised by it now because he gets really uneasy when you take his socks off
Sunday, and it’s finally out
The nurse puts the plaster on
That’s more like it. The smiles return
From miyagi.sg: One mosquito bite http://tinyurl.com/lje994
i'm glad he's better. that must have been quite a scare!
oh baby kai is so cute (: (: I had dengue fever before and it was like crazy horrible, couldn't sleep the whole night, waking up due to headaches. worst experience in my life and i am glad baby Kai didn't get the whole cannot sleep / feverish experience?
also about how alert your doctor is: that is fabulous. when I had dengue in 2002, i went to 3 doctors who thought I had flu. My usual doctor was away and only when he came back 3 days later did he diagnose me with dengue. Really glad you and Naomi found out early.
Well done KAi. You are a SURVIVOR! Rawrrrrr!
wow, you guys did take baby kai to the doc at the right time. Just crazy how silent dengue is – especially for kids who can't talk yet! And luckily Baby Kai can forget the pain as he grows up, but it must have hurt quite a bit for such a small baby
poor baby kai.. i'm glad you are well now!
love your burger-cheeeks!
glad he's ok now!
Must be really painful for both baby kai and parent.. I'm glad baby kai is ok and good to see his pic with a great smile
Hey, aren't you glad that they came by to check your place 6 months ago? https://www.miyagi.sg/2008/12/mosquito-spot-check/
BTW, i believe only hotspots get these type of checks. I used to get 3-4 of these.
Apparently, breastfeeding helps prevent dengue. http://www.babycenter.com.sg/pregnancy/complica…
Hope your baby recovers soon and do get a mozzie net (available from aussino/ikea) to cover his cot.
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Poor baby! It is really sad when babies get sick and as a parent you can't do a damn thing about it.
Am glad you all made it safely through to the other side.
Stay well!
glad the smile is back. Really poor thing.
aww poor baby kai!! he's such a trooper! hugs from all of us!
RE: Hi bluethorn, breastfeeding does not prevent dengue. The baby gets immunity from one of the four viruses that cause … http://disq.us/ar3
poor Kai. glad dat he's ok now.
Hi bluethorn, breastfeeding does not prevent dengue. The baby gets immunity from one of the four viruses that cause dengue, and not the other three. If the baby gets bitten by a mozzie that carries any of the other three, the symptoms are more severe and life-threatening.
No, I am not glad they came and checked six months ago. They've been checking again and around the neighbourhood lately because of Kai's bout with dengue. Nothing has been done about the vacant units in the condo though.
oh dear. i cannot take it when babies fall sick. it's like they really don't deserve it. adults well, they do stuff, they don't eat right, they go hang out with pigs and birds and civet cats, leave pools of stagnant water… but babies do nothing.
am glad he's well again. take care you! it must have been traumatic.
oh dear. i cannot take it when babies fall sick. it's like they really don't deserve it. adults well, they do stuff, they don't eat right, they go hang out with pigs and birds and civet cats, leave pools of stagnant water… but babies do nothing.
am glad he's well again. take care you! it must have been traumatic.