Illness that’s killed TWO babies and sickened others can be easily missed due to crucial factors, moms of victims reveal
A RARE illness has killed two babies and left others sick in recent months, according to their families and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Mothers of the babies have warned that the sickness, known as Human Parechovirus, can be easily missed due to misinformation about prevalent symptoms.
Parechovirus is said to cause seizures, fever, delirium, and other additional sepsis-like symptoms in newborns.
Following the deaths of Ronan DeLacy and Waylon Hood when they were just over a month old, the CDC released a warning that they have “received reports from healthcare providers in multiple states of PeV infections in neonates and young infants.”
In an exclusive conversation with The US Sun, Ronan's mom Kat DeLancy explained that the focus on a fever as a symptom per doctors and the CDC could cause parents to dismiss other key warning signs of the illness.
“If we are looking for a fever to be a diagnostic marker, several children will be overlooked and it will delay care,” DeLancy told The US Sun.
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DeLancy noted that baby Ronan’s initial symptoms were a refusal to eat, irritability, and redness on his chest, but not necessarily a fever, despite the CDC information.
“Something that I want stressed is that Ronan never had a fever. I’ve spoken with several other parents of children who have had children suffer with this virus who said the same," DeLancy said.
"Ronan had difficulty maintaining his body temperature high enough, as did many other infants after they were admitted.”
Maddison Hood’s son, Waylon, also experienced symptoms and issues similar to Ronan’s.
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She told The US Sun that her son’s body temperature was in fact lower than normal as well.
“His pediatrician said that all of his vitals were fine but she wanted me to take him to a children's ER for further evaluation. When we got there, his temperature was low so they put him on a warm blanket,” Hood told The US Sun.
Similar to Ronan’s struggle with oxygen saturation per comments with , baby Waylon experienced difficulty breathing, leading to other procedures like a CT scan and spinal tap.
“As soon as he was placed on the blanket, he stopped breathing so they intubated him and did a CT and a spinal tap,” Hood told The US Sun.
The CT would then confirm that it was in fact Parechovirus.
Both Ronan and Waylon suffered from seizures and significant brain damage due to the virus.
Hood explained that doctors informed her that Waylon had “significant irreversible brain damage.”
For DeLancy, doctors discovered that Ronan was having seizures and suffered damage as well, per her previous comments.
As far as protection from Parechovirus and what doctors have been saying about it, DeLancy stressed that exposure seems more likely to have happened at the hospital in her opinion.
“The advice doctors have been giving is ‘keep newborns away from sick people’ which should be obvious, and we did that,” DeLancy told The US Sun.
“He had been exposed to MANY more people (only hospital staff) while he was in the hospital when he was born and it’s possible that is where many of these children are picking up the virus.”
After their experiences, Hood and DeLancy are making efforts to raise awareness for Parechovirus, especially as it seems to be on the rise.
DeLancy and her husband have started a website, , that seeks to raise awareness about everything pertaining to Human Parechovirus.
Hood is also making efforts to help any other infants in honor if Waylon.
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“I am able to donate my breastmilk even almost three months after his passing. I am still pumping every four hours to be able to donate to babies in need, in his honor,” she told The US Sun.
Parents can find the official CDC warning , along with more information on the illness.