She had no symptoms beyond a high fever for most of the first week, and by the time blisters showed up it was probably too late for the antivirals to be effective. Considering that more than half the world has the cold sore virus, we don’t understand why so few infants die from the disease or why our beautiful daughter Mallory was the unlucky statistic, but that’s the way the world works I suppose.
Please, if you’re reading this, be extra diligent about washing your hands around newborns. Statistically speaking, you’re probably infected with HSV-1 whether you know it or not.
Did you read that? The World Health Organization says 67% of all humans on earth have HSV, which means Gobel is right—even if you’ve never had a symptom, you’re more likely to have it than not. So if you’re going to be around an infant, especially a newborn, you need to wash. those. hands. And then wash them AGAIN. You don’t have to have a cold sore or any other obvious symptoms to transmit the virus to another person.
If you have an infant, know that recognizing the symptoms of neonatal herpes can be very difficult. You should seek medical attention for your newborn if he or she has a fever, refuses to eat, or develops a skin blister or blisters. In Mallory’s case, she had a high fever for a week, but by the time the blisters developed, it was too late to save her. Do all you can to ensure that ANYONE coming into contact with your baby has washed their hands thoroughly with soap and hot water.
Photo: Jeff Gobel/Facebook
It breaks my heart to look at this sweet baby girl and know what her parents are going through. I appreciate Jeff Gobel using Mallory’s story to try and spare other parents from this grief. I know it’s not “cold and flu” season, but HSV can be transmitted at any time of the year, so I hope you’ll share Gobel’s message as well. Let’s use our voices, as Gobel has done, to keep other babies safe from the disastrous effects of HSV.
