The mother of Mariana Sifrit is talking out about the terrible death as her daughter is laid to rest in a funeral. Mariana pass away at just 18 days old after she developed a fatal virus that might have been contracted from a simple kiss.
Nicole and Shane Sifrit were rejoicing their wedding when they observed their just a week-old daughter, Mariana, had become so inactive that she couldn’t gather the strength to eat. The couple rushed from the reception to Blank Children’s Hospital in Des Moines, Iowa, where doctors informed them that Mariana had contracted herpes simplex virus type 1, which led to the difficulty of meningitis and that it was causing havoc on her central nervous system.
While doctors at Blank and at University of Iowa Children’s Hospital were sometimes able to keep her stable but Mariana’s organs shut down one by one and she died in her father’s arms.
Doctors say that it is possible that Mariana contacted the virus from a kiss by somebody infected with it. As Nicole prepared for Mariana’s funeral, she cautioned parents of the actual danger the virus presents.
Nicole said that if someone know that they carry a virus, even if it doesn’t affect them, then please don’t go see a new-born child because there is nil that they can do to fight it off the deadly virus. She said that protecting our child is our job and we should don’t feel like we are hurting other people’s feelings. She adds that just being a first-hand parent, be mindful of who you have come to the hospital and make sure people are washing their hands.
David Warburton, a professor of pediatrics at the Keck School of Medicine at USC who had no participation in Mariana’s case, resonances the grief-stricken mother’s caution. The professor said that if a person who kisses the baby has an active herpes simplex lesion in their mouth or they’re carrying the virus at a low level without lesions, they could pass on the disease to the baby with the virus. He further said that it is usually a good idea to keep your baby away from other people for about a month.
Nicole adds that she and her husband aren’t examining who may have passed the virus on to Mariana. She said for them it is irrelevant as they are not in the situation to hate anybody and it would just be better if they didn’t know.
The couple said that they will share Mariana’s story and keep her alive that way. Nicole says this is how they will grieve and get through this while they save other kids’ lives and make other parents alert.
