This Week in Pediatrics...

Habari ya asubuhi! (Good morning!) I’m enjoying this drizzly African morning, sipping on green tea while listening to the rooster outside of our window. I never expected to wake up to rain/fog every morning in Africa...you usually think of Africa HOT when it comes to this place. But I really enjoy these mornings and I will miss them. 

I apologize for the lack of posts these past few days. I don’t think I’ve posted since last week so here goes another test of memory. Let’s see…Saturday was quiet around the house. Grace, Zigi, and I made our little family breakfast in bed as we watched Hotel Rwanda with plans of going to the Rwanda tribute in Arusha afterwards. Long story short, there was a little bit of a mix-up and we were brought to the East African Community for a tour instead. Oh well, its Africa! That seems to be our answer to everything now, haha! That night, our Indian neighbors took Grace and me to one of their friends’ houses to get Henna tattoos. The sweet family said it was our Eid gifts. A little bit of a scary experience driving into town at night, but all in all, a great experience with some locals… Definitely not the typical roadside vendor henna tattoos!

Ironically, Grace and I attended a Catholic Church service the following morning with our fully tatted up arms…oops!  We tried to cover them up with sweaters but it was nearly impossible when we had to shake hands during the service. It wasn’t a big deal though, just a few funny looks is all. The people in Arusha are anything but judgmental and Grace and I really just wanted to see how the service differed from her Catholic church back home. Afterwards, Grace and I did a typical circout on the roof. But this time, we ran into some minor problems…more like a HUGE chaotic freakout! We were doing some floor work and as we stood up from our last set, we saw a MASSIVE swarm of bees heading straight towards our faces! I’m talking hundreds and hundreds of bees!!! We screamed, sprinted down the stairs, and we just starred at each other blankly terrified. Where did they come from? Why didn’t they sting us? What just happened?!?! Who knows, but it was scary! 

I’ve been spending this week in Pediatrics and it’s been great! It seems to be the most organized department of the hospital that I have seen so far. Dr. Lace, an American doctor from Oregon, and another local doctor take the students on ward rounds every morning. We look over each patient’s history, review treatment plans, and alter the plans if necessary. We have come across some really interesting and bizarre cases this week:

• Rheumatic Heart Disease – The child’s heart was extremely enlarged with abnormal systolic heart sounds, possible mitral valve regurgitation 
• Patent Ductus Arteriosus - the passage between the heart and lungs doesn't close after birth, often leading to heart failure if left untreated. You can see how enlarged the baby's heart is in this X-ray!
  

• Interception of the intestines – where the small intestine pushes into the large intestine causing diarrhea and severe pain 
•  Brucellosis – A bacterial infection caused by unpasteurized milk or undercooked meat
• Anthrax – A baby came in with black lesions on its face with severe swelling
• Friedreich’s Ataxia – This was the most bizarre case. This 8 year old  was acting completely normal days ago, attending 2^ndgrade, playing sports, and running around with friends. 2 weeks ago, the boy started to feel pain in his head, lost all ability to speak and walk, and has a form of mental retardation. Very interesting
• Convulsions and Hypoglycemia – Mom brought in her son after a bad response to some mysterious herb treatment for the boy’s recurrent seizures. Blood glucose level was 0. We pumped the stomach and replenished fluids and glucose.  
• Tuberculosis – The child had a bad cough and swollen, painful joints. We discovered TB in the lungs and TB that had also infected the joints.

Some of these diseases are so rare back home and I will probably NEVER see them again. I certainly didn’t think I would see a case of Anthrax in my life! However, I do wish we had the resources to end the suffering and make these diseases as rare as they are back home. While that is probably impossible (at least in the near future), we can help by providing the hospital with supplies to improve the health of patients. I have already posted on Facebook but for those who have not seen, I wanted to let you know that Grace has created a fundraising site for the hospital. It is common for the hospital to run out of frequently used medications like adrenaline, ampicillin, and diclofenac. I’ve tried to take blood pressure from children in the ER, but the cuffs are much too large. They could really use a child’s size cuff in the ER. Nurses will often use my gloves because the departments will frequently run out. A box of 100 gloves is only $4! I could go on and on…but the point is, if you have a few dollars to spare or know someone that might, please consider making a donation at https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/fpqrb/ab/a3poZ3

We will ensure that the supplies reach the departments and are being used within the next couple of weeks. Thanks to those who have already donated...together we have already raised $930! What amazing support you all are back home. We seriously can't thank you enough!

Here are some more pictures from this week...

 The front of Mt. Meru Hospital

Welcome home Kilimanjaro hikers!