One of the things every mom wants for her child is to ensure his healthy growth. The hardest part of motherhood for me is when my children are sick, especially when they are still so young. Infants can't express if something is painful or wrong. We moms just sense when something isn't right with them.
It is sweet to have a baby in the house. They bring such joy and vibrant feelings into the home. But I tell you, they grow very quickly, and at times we wish they could stay babies a little longer for us to cuddle. In our case, hearing from the doctor that our baby isn't growing well made me very worried. Every day, I would pray to God for miracles to touch my baby's body so he can thrive and grow as quickly as possible. What an irony! This journey hasn't been easy to accept. We've consulted many specialists about his health to improve his condition.
After months of workups and a series of laboratory examinations, there are no significant findings apart from his anemia. He has a low red blood cell and hemoglobin count. Healthy red blood cells carry oxygen and nutrients for the nourishment of our body cells - the smallest units of our body. When red blood cells are impaired, it can lead to retarded cell growth, affecting all our bodily functions. A number of reasons can cause anemia. We had to consult a pediatric hematologist for EJ's case. We are fortunate to have a good doctor close to our home.
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| Normal appearanc of RBCs under a microscope |
The doctor needs to look at his
peripheral blood smear. I had an idea of what it should look like under a
microscope. A normal red blood cell looks like a donut with a central
pallor. See the above photo. Any difference would mean abnormal results.
EJ's peripheral blood smear shows slightly microcytic rbcs (slightly small in size), hypochromia (rbcs with lesser color because of low hemoglobin content), fragmented rbcs (broken cells), target
cells (the central area has colored pigment) and crenated rbcs (this case can also be due to technical factors). This type of peripheral blood smear is typically seen in Iron
Deficiency Anemia and Thalassemia. Our doctor told me not to worry or
think further about our baby's condition. We will first consider Iron Deficiency
Anemia and see how he will respond to iron treatment. He was given a high
dose of iron supplement, and Vitamin C. Vitamin C will aid the body's absorption
of iron. According to our doctor, the patient should respond to iron therapy
after two months, but there are also cases based on her experience that it takes four
months to see more improved results.
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| Target Cells - Note of the colored central area |
At times, I don't know if I should be thankful that I am a Medical Technologist. A pro is that I can better understand my child's condition. The cons are that I sometimes go too far and end up worrying about my son's health. One thing I need to keep in mind is to be still and place my hope in God because I know He's in control of everything. Though there are times I don't understand why we have to go through this kind of experience. It hurts me deeply, and I often ask God why. In the Hematologist Clinic, I see many children undergoing chemotherapy; their hair is gone due to the treatments, and my heart breaks to see them and feel their pain. From the parents' perspective, I know it is not easy to help their children fight to continue living. It is a real battle every day to survive. Going through this experience helps me understand how hard it is for parents when their children face difficult times, such as terrible diseases. If I could only take on that pain and disease, I would do it for my child.
EJ has completed his one-month iron therapy. His recent blood test results are still below normal levels but show improvement compared to the previous test. We are still hoping his condition will improve with only iron therapy. He has demonstrated good weight gain and is achieving his developmental milestones on time. Since then, he has continued to be a very happy baby, bringing our home so much fun and laughter. Every day, we need God's grace to continue, and during this time, God has taught me to give Him thanks not only for the good things that happen in our lives but also in moments when I don't understand His ways because He is God. I guess I wouldn't be this close to Him if my life were easy and went just the way I wanted it to be.
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