Mom Told Baby Might Never Walk or Talk After Scan—Then Everything Changed

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Tiffany Bates was told her daughter "might never eat, breathe, see, walk, crawl, or do anything independently." ...

Tiffany Bates, a stay-at-home mom, was left fearing the worst when scans indicated her daughter had a devastating health condition. Two years later, however, much has changed.

Tiffany Bates has three daughters, the youngest of whom is named Kyliah. There was nothing out of the ordinary about Bates' pregnancy with Kyliah at first. However, that all changed when she went for her 20-week ultrasound.

"That's when they found a severe amount of fluid building up in her brain," Bates told Newsweek.

Bates was referred to a specialist the very next day. Because of the severity of Kyliah's case, she was eventually referred to a larger children's hospital about two-and-a-half hours away for weekly ultrasounds.

"Each week, the fluid continued to increase," Bates said, who added that Kyliah was initially diagnosed with ventriculomegaly, a condition in which the fluid-filled ventricles of the brain are larger than normal.

Often detected during pregnancy, ventriculomegaly can range from mild to severe and may, in some cases, increase the risk of developmental problems or hydrocephalus, a buildup of fluid in the brain. This buildup can create pressure that damages delicate brain tissue and interferes with normal development.

Hydrocephalus affects an estimated one to two out of every 1,000 babies born in the U.S. and is among the most common neurological conditions in infants, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Symptoms can include rapid head growth, vomiting, poor feeding, sleepiness, seizures, and developmental delays. Left untreated, hydrocephalus can result in learning difficulties, vision and movement problems, and, in severe cases, permanent brain damage.

Bates learned much of this during her pregnancy. The prognosis for Kyliah was not good.

"We were told that because of the severity, she might never eat, breathe, see, walk, crawl, or do anything independently," she said.

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