Abigail is a young toddler from Tanzania who was born a healthy child and had no health-related problems. Abigail’s father is a pastoralist who keeps cows, goat and sheep, her mother is a stay-home mother. About six weeks ago she started having what her parents described as fits and her parents rushed her to a nearby hospital where they tried to manage the fits and referred her to another hospital for further management.
At the referral hospital, it was determined that Abigail had a brain abscess and needed surgery immediately. Due to lack of a neurosurgeon at that hospital, Abigail was referred to Watsi’s Medical Partner Care Center ALMC Hospital for treatment. Abigail’s parents could not afford the surgery and so ALMC-The Plaster House paid for her brain abscess drainage surgery, which was done on 9th April. Since then, she has been recovering on antibiotics. Abigail has developed hydrocephalus due to ventriculitis which is an inflammation of the ventricles in the brain and she needs surgery to relieve the building of pressure in her brain. As a result of her condition, Abigail has been experiencing increased head size faster than a normal child due to fluid accumulation. Without treatment, Abigail will experience severe physical and developmental delays.
Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,238 to cover the cost of surgery for Abigail that will treat her hydrocephalus. The procedure is scheduled to take place on April 23rd and will drain the excess fluid from Abigail’s brain. This will reduce intracranial pressure and greatly improve her quality of life. With proper treatment, Abigail will hopefully develop into a strong, healthy young girl.
Abigail’s mother says, “My daughter was talking and eating and had started to walk on her own, everything has happened so fast. Please help her get this treatment, please.”