When Michelle Saayman noticed something unusual in her baby’s eye, she had no idea the condition was so severe that the eye was simply disappearing. The heartbroken mother said she initially thought her then 16-month-old had contracted an eye infection, but sadly, the reality was much worse. Doctors told her that the toddler actually had the herpes simplex virus (HSV), likely from a kiss he received from someone with an active virus on their lips. “The doctor was telling me that my baby had a cold sore growing on his cornea. I was literally looking at the doctor wondering if it was April Fools’ Day because I thought it was an April Fools’ joke,” Michelle told Metro. Unfortunately, the cold sore spread to the cornea of the eye, causing little Juwan to lose his vision in that eye.
This was a result of the loss of natural moisture. “By this time, the cold sore had done so much damage that he basically lost all sensation in his eye. He couldn’t see anything,” Michelle shared. “This meant that the brain no longer recognized the eye and stopped sending signals to the eye. The gel that protected the eye later evaporated and the eye dried out.” The family took Juwan to Cape Town, where he underwent an amnion transplant in the hopes of saving his cornea. They are planning another operation in April, where nerves will be transplanted from his leg to his eye in the hopes of creating a chance for a cornea transplant next year. “Juwan is such a fighter, he was really always smiling. But he was in a lot of pain,” his mother said. “It’s not fair for such a small person to go through all this.”
At first, Michelle and her husband were very angry at the person who kissed their boy, spreading the cold sore. However, they understand that the person did not do it on purpose. At this point, the virus has been partially contained, but unfortunately the damage has been done and Juwan will not be able to regain the vision in that eye. His parents are trying to raise awareness by sharing the story of how their little one’s eye “melted” over something as innocent as a kiss. They want everyone to know the dangers of the virus. “Fever rash is supposed to be on the lips or in the mouth,” she said. “I have never heard of a fever rash growing on the cornea in my life.” Michelle wrote a lengthy post on Facebook and the family has set up a fundraiser to help with the huge medical costs, which include frequent trips to South Africa as the family is originally from Namibia. “It’s been a long, hard road and we are doing everything we can to save our son’s eye,” Michelle wrote. We sincerely hope that things turn out for the best for this young man. Please SHARE this article with your family and friends on Facebook.
