July 2015 Featured Child: Song

This month’s featured child is little Song. Song came to our Infant Care Home in Beijing earlier this year in March. He was 4 months old at that time. He came to us with an initial diagnosis of biliary atresia.

We soon got Song checked by doctors here in Beijing, who confirmed that he does have biliary atresia. Biliary atresia is a life-threatening condition in infants in which the bile ducts inside or outside the liver do not have normal openings. And so, Song needed treatment as soon as possible, or else his liver would fail.

In April, Song was able to get the Kasai procedure and he is currently recovering well from it. Kasai is a surgical procedure done for biliary atresia babies that helps to route the bile out of the liver and into the digestive system where it is needed.  It is generally not a curative or long term fix, but can buy the baby some time before he needs a liver transplant.  Since his return from the hospital, Song’s skin is less yellow in color, but still not normal. Although Song is stable now, he is still in need of a major, lifesaving medical surgery in the future.

Song is able to now roll over by himself! And he can sit up with a little support. He is a sweet boy who loves to be cuddled! Our staff pays close attention to provide the specialized nutrition that he needs in order to maximize his liver function.

We hope that Song’s adoption paperwork goes through quickly and that he finds his “forever family” soon. We wish he can be connected with a family before he reaches the point where he needs a liver transplant in order to survive.