BENGALURU: A baby boy with tight, waxy and parchment-like skin, suffering from a rare collodion disorder, was born at a Bengaluru hospital and survived after receiving intensive treatment for nearly four weeks.
“He faced several challenges as the body was enclosed in a thick membrane, leading to abnormalities, like inability to close the eyelids, and an outward-turning upper lip. The skin resembled a plastic wrap, and the dry itchy skin gave the baby a rubber-like look,” Dr Harini Sreedhan, consultant (paediatrics and neonatology) at Mazumdar Shaw Medical Centre, Narayana Health, said.
The condition posed difficulty for the mother to feed the baby and it also exposed the infant to risk of infections, respiratory distress and electrolyte imbalance. He was kept in the ICU for four weeks, during which collective support of dermatologists, ophthalmologists and neonatologists helped the baby survive.
The incidence of collodion baby is estimated to be 1 in 3 lakh and are usually born preterm. The collodion membrane peels off over time. However, only one-tenth of the patients develop normal underlying skin later, according to a National Institutes of Health report. Doctors observed that a 53 per cent mortality rate is witnessed for such complex cases globally.
“In another case, a pre-term baby was born in the 25th week, barely weighing 600 gm, and suffering from respiratory distress and underdeveloped kidneys. It largely relied on minimal oxygen support and was also kept in the ICU,” Dr Sreedaran said. Over time, the baby gained weight and transitioned to oral feeding as well. In both pre-term cases, the chances of survival were minimal. Doctors attributed the success of the treatments to the intensive care support provided at the hospital.