“Don’t Let People Kiss Your Baby”, Devastated Mom Warns After Newborn Died From Herpes

Kisses are sweet but for newborns, they could be fatal. A newborn has died from a case of meningitis caused by a kiss from a visitor in her parents’ wedding day.

A 3-week-old baby girl died after contracting viral meningitis and now her parents are warning others to never let anyone kiss their babies. Mariana Reese Sifrit was born just in time for her parents’ wedding day.

Baby Mariana just lived for 18 days.

A couple of hours later, they brought her to the hospital due to an illness. She had herpes simplex virus and her parents believe that during their wedding day, a friend or relative who have the HSV1 virus had touched or kissed their baby.

The HSV-1 virus is likely transmitted by the kiss of someone with a cold sore. For adults, this illness may just be petty and easy to treat but for newborns, with underdeveloped immune systems, this virus is deadly.

She was born healthy but her health suddenly deteriorated after her parents' wedding.

Mariana was born healthy only to be brought back to the hospital because of an infection. Her liver is failing, she had internal bleeding and her blood wouldn’t clot, CBS News reported.

Nicole, Mariana’s mother, told Today:

“I never really thought this could happen to us. We hope to bring awareness to other parents of newborns to be cautious on who visits your baby, who holds or touches them, and don’t let others kiss your baby.”

She was confined in the intensive care unit.

Mariana could have been infected by anyone that’s why it’s important to make sure your newborn is kept isolated in the first few days of life. Their immune systems are still weak and they can’t fight even simple microorganisms. The best thing to do is to always keep an eye on your baby and make sure everyone who touches him or her would use disinfectants like alcohol first. Moreover, never let anyone kiss your baby on the lips.

A GoFundme page has been originally set up for the baby’s treatment but now, it’ll be used for her unexpected medical costs and funeral expenses.