Viviane

July 10th, 2022

Viviane, who has been suffering from severe undernutrition, was recently hospitalized after she lost a lot of weight. Last month, at the beginning of her hospitalization, at two and a half years old, she weighed 6.4 kg. As she is not able to eat solid food, her weight gain was already very slow. Her state of undernutrition, aggravated by a lack of hygiene that we unfortunately witnessed at home, resulted in her hospitalization. After three weeks spent at the hospital, Viviane has now returned home. Her weight is progressing steadily, and she is doing much better. We continue to meet with her parents on a regular basis to discuss the urgency of Viviane’s condition, which requires even more attention given her handicap.⁠

May 9th, 2022

We visited Viviane, who had many sores on her mouth and body. We treated her at the center and discussed with her mom about the importance of good hygiene. ⁠

April 5th, 2022

Viviane was suffering from oral mycosis which we treated at the center. She continues the physical therapy sessions, which have been very helpful. She is now able to turn from her back to her stomach and vice versa. She is crawling, which is a great achievement given her severe disability.

February 22nd, 2022

Viviane came to the center with fever and diarrhea. We gave her the appropriate treatment and took the opportunity to renew her physiotherapy sessions, which are going very well! ⁠

January 15th, 2022

Viviane carries on with her physiotherapy sessions, which are proving to be very successful. She has made good progress. She is now sitting on her own and has developed a better tonicity!⁠

December 29th, 2021

Viviane weighs 7.60 kg at 2 years old. She has made a lot of progress with her motor skills since the beginning of the physical therapy sessions. She is starting to open her mouth to eat on her own and is sitting up without help!⁠

October 30th, 2021

Viviane is making good progress on the psychomotor level. She now listens to the words of those around her and answers all questions by shaking her head! She even claps when her mom asks her. She holds her head almost perfectly and has mastered the sitting position. At one year and eight months old, she is still learning to stand on her feet, but she walks very well on all fours!⁠

September 19th, 2021

Viviane is having great difficulty eating. She has lost weight (about 470 g). Her mom told us that she can no longer eat food containing chunks. She eats almost exclusively porridge. We gave her a lot of advice on how to enrich her diet with proteins. Nevertheless, Viviane can now sit up on her own, she has more strength and muscle tone than she did before.

August 20th, 2021

Viviane is having great difficulty eating. She has lost weight (about 470 g). Her mom told us that she can no longer eat food containing chunks. She eats almost exclusively porridge. We gave her a lot of advice on how to enrich her diet with proteins. Nevertheless, Viviane can now sit up on her own, she has more strength and muscle tone than she did before.

July 31st, 2021

We met with Viviane’s neurologist this week. He prescribed a blood test, an EEG (Electroencephalogram), as well as physiotherapy sessions due to her handicap. We will organize this as soon as possible, and we will let you know about the results.⁠

July 10th, 2021

Our little Viviane, one year and eight months old, came in for a consultation with a fever, headaches and a persistent nasal discharge. As a reminder, she suffers from a polymalformative syndrome. She now weighs 7.82 kg, which indicates that she is coming out of malnutrition! We made an appointment with her pediatrician, because her treatments are very complex due to her handicap. The small business we helped finance for her mom is still going very well!

(Second photo: Viviane’s mom preparing “bouillie”, a baby porridge). 

June 2nd, 2021

We visited Viviane and her mom, who was very happy with the wooden structure we financed to protect her small business (trade of pasta, soap, oils, etc.). The business has started well and we continue to check in regularly.

May 22nd, 2021

We financed the new business of Viviane’s mom so that she can become independent in providing for her family. It consists of a trade of raw materials (pasta, soap, oils, etc.). We also financed a small wooden structure that will protect the business.

May 12th, 2021

As Viviane’s splint had become too small, we had it widened. We also financed a consultation with an ophthalmologist, and we were reassured to learn that she doesn’t have any disorder.

May 1st, 2021

We had an appointment with the Pediatric Surgeon regarding Viviane’s care. It turns out that she has no digestive or respiratory malformation. Her breathing and swallowing problems are likely due to her neurological condition (brain atrophy seen on her previous scan). We are waiting to hear back from the surgeon on the next steps. Viviane has gained 1 kg in six weeks, and she can now hold her head on her own! She can almost sit up and cries much less than before. However, she still can’t eat anything other than porridge due to the texture of other foods being too solid. We advised her mom to try giving her crushed spaghetti to start with. As the family has limited income, we donated a small food supply so that the children have enough to eat. We also started to discuss with the mom about a small business that we would like to help her finance.

March 11th, 2021

We saw Viviane, who is now wearing a splint. The long-term goal is to correct her foot deformity. We are still waiting to hear from the pediatric surgeon at the Hospital of Lomé regarding her ENT and digestive malformation.

February 20th, 2021

Viviane was at the center to meet the orthopedist of the CNAO (Centre National d’Appareillage Orthopédique). He came to visit the center and offered to do this consultation for free. Viviane will need a foot splint to help with her handicap.
Following the last medical examinations regarding her respiratory and deglutition problems, we are waiting for further information from the surgeons, who now have to decide which treatment to adopt.

February 12th, 2021

We took Viviane to the Hospital of Lomé for a complete checkup. A pediatric surgeon examined Viviane carefully and explained to us the complexity of her situation. Concerning the deformation of her feet, he suggested that we get an opinion at the CNAO (National Center for Orthopedic Devices). Regarding her respiratory and deglutition problems, he prescribed a TOGD test, to be carried out in a private clinic. We carried out this test, as well as a brain scan to evaluate Viviane’s psychomotor deficit. We also fear that she suffers from visual impairment because her eyes do not react to light. We are now waiting for the results of the exams.