• A CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis dome at the Mephi Hospital in Kilifi showed large volume of ascites, massive water build-up.
• Various diagnoses, medical bills expected to be hurge,.
Image: ELIAS YAA
A four-year-old girl in Kilifi is very sick. Her abdomen has swollen like a balloon, far larger than her head.
Doctors don't know for sure but believe she has a heart condition.
Her mother, Bendera Nduyra, says her daughter Zawadi Neema, is suffering from massive ascites, a water build-up.
It has been getting worse since she was two years old.
Ndurya said she delivered her daughter at home without any complications. Then the baby started coughing for a few days.
“She used to eat soil when she was five months old. And when she started coughing, I took her to a dispensary in Dungicha and she was treated,” she said.
However,when she was two years old, she started growing weak and her abdomen started to swell on the right side.
When she took Zawadi to the hospital, she was diagnosed with a severe form of malnutrition, but her condition persisted even after being put on various supplements.
“I took her to Mirihini health centre and they referred me to Bamba Subcounty Jospital. At Bamba, they referred me to Mariakani subcounty hospital and later to Kilifi county hospital,” she added
She was admitted twice at Kilifi.
“The doctors said she had a kidney problem and she was put on medication. They later did a second test and said the kidneys were all okay.
"They removed the fluid from the abdomen. They gave me some medication and told me that it will drain the remaining fluid but it never did,” she added.
A CT scan of the abdomen and pelvis dome at the Mephi Hospital in Kilifi showed large volume ascites likely secondary to congestive heart failure.
It also showed an enlarged heart with large pericardial effusion.
Pericardial effusion is the buildup of too much fluid in the double-layered, saclike structure around the heart, the pericardium.
The doctors recommended an ultrasound of the heart which costs about Sh35,000.
After this, several other tests will be necessary to determine what exactly she is ailing from.
the hospital bill is likely to go far higher.
So far the single mother of seven children, said she cannot cater for the medical needs of her child.https://admin-dot-the-star-218910.appspot.com/news/5220875383078912/
“Even putting food on the table is a big challenge. I cannot go to work because I need to be with my daughter,” she added.
She said Neema cannot lie in bed and she always sleeps while leaning on her.
“She hardly eats. Her urine is dark and she goes to the toilet once in two days,” she said.
Bendera Ndurya can be reached on 0115182684 by well-wishers.
(Edited by V. Graham)