A four-month-old baby was rushed to hospital and nearly died after choking on his own vomit. After taking little Romey Lloyd to A&E, Paula Mantle was then rushed to the resuscitation room after a paramedic took one look at her grandson. Paula initially went to the emergency department after noticing Romey having difficulty breathing.
Paula, 52, said: “He’d been sick and it had gone into his lungs. His heart swelled and crushed his airways. We took him to Hereford Hospital and he was transferred straight to Birmingham under clinical care.
“It was absolutely awful. I carried him into A&E and a paramedic stood there. She took one look at him and said ‘How long has he been like that for?’ and I said ‘About fifteen minutes’, and she rushed us straight into the resuscitation room, where he was put on a ventilator, and he was very close to death. It was as bad as it could get.
“We asked if it was life-threatening and they said yes.” Romey was born with 42 missing genes, affecting his heart, kidneys, and other organs. He was placed in an induced coma and an X-ray revealed he had breathed milk into his lungs and was also diagnosed with pneumonia.
After being rushed to hospital at the end of April Romey is now off oxygen and on the road to recovery, reports the Liverpool Echo. Despite this, doctors have no idea how his condition will continue to affect him later in life.
Paula said: “When Romey was born, they noticed different facial features. His ears were lower than normal, his eyes were further apart and he had no chin. They had to do genetic tests, and we didn’t get results for about four weeks.”
Romey spent six weeks in the hospital with his parents Kimberley and Christopher. Following extensive tests, the couple was given the heartbreaking news that their baby could suffer from kidney and heart defects, eye and ear problems, and difficulty swallowing.
Paula said: “Nobody has any answers because we don’t know how his genes will affect him. We know it will affect his heart, his kidneys. But we don’t know how long his lifespan will be. Even at this time, it’s very touch-and-go with his heart.
“He’s on daily medication every day. He’s got a feeding tube and he’ll probably have a feeding tube for as long as he needs liquids for. He’s only grown 4cm in the weeks he’s been alive.”
With the aim of helping her grandson, Paula set up an online fundraiser for specialist equipment that would allow Kim and Chris to monitor Romey’s oxygen levels from home. She also hopes to raise £5,000 for a special pediatric cot to keep him elevated and stop him from choking again.
She said: “Kim needs as much support as she can. It’s a very frightening time for them, but the fear will never go away unfortunately because Romney’s condition every day is different. Kim has just been told by the hospital that Romey’s body was starting to shut down. I just thank God that Kim is very cautious when it comes to Romey, as it could have gone undetected and had a different outcome.”