Battered baby still critical, but stable

The two-year-old battered baby undergoing treatment in the ICU of the trauma centre at AIIMS continues to remain critical but stable.

The two-year-old battered baby undergoing treatment in the ICU of the trauma centre at AIIMS continues to remain critical but stable.

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“Her condition has neither improved nor deteriorated over the past week. The infection in the chest and blood has come down significantly, which means that that the new antibiotic is working well. Though the fluid is still getting accumulated in her brain, we have created a passage to drain it out safely,” said a doctor at the hospital.

The baby was brought to the trauma centre on January 18, with severe head injuries, broken arms, bite marks over the body and cheeks branded with hot iron by a 14-year-old who claimed to be her mother.

An emergency surgery was performed on her on the day of her arrival, and since then four surgeries have been conducted on her to save her life. Due to difficulty in breathing, the baby had also to be put on ventilatory support frequently.

“We do not want her to get used to the assisted respiration that is why when she shows some improvement, we put her off ventilator to allow her to try and breathe on her own. She is on ventilator at present,” said the doctor.