Baby bitten by rat to stay in Sion hospital for two more weeks

Two-month-old Bilkis, who was brought to Sion hospital with rat bites on her face, will have to stay in hospital for at least two weeks.

Two-month-old Bilkis, who was brought to Sion hospital with rat bites on her face, will have to stay in hospital for at least two weeks.

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The girl, whose mother is reportedly “mentally unsound”, was brought to the hospital a fortnight ago with bite marks on her nose, ears and upper lip. Her father, who lives in Dharavi, works as a watchman.

“When she was brought to us, she was severely dehydrated. We first gave her intravenous (IV) fluids with antibiotics to stabilise her,” said Dr Paras Kothari, head of paediatric surgery at Sion hospital.

The bite wounds had turned black because of toxicity and inadequate blood supply to the skin. The surgeons had to remove the dead skin and will perform skin grafting on the wounds.

“Right now, she is breathing through her mouth. In 10 days, we will graft skin on her nose leaving a passage for breathing. When she is older, we will have to graft the cartilage on her nose and ears and shape them,” said Dr Kothari.

Dr Kothari said Bilkis’s father had said he was unable to take care of the baby.

“Our ayah takes care of her. But she is there only for eight hours after which resident doctors take care of her. I am worried about the child’s safety considering there is no one around her all the time,” said Dr Kothari.

The doctors have taken the father’s photograph and noted his address and phone number.