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“He’s a happy-go-lucky boy who hardly ever cries,” says Eduardo’s mother,Geraldine Morillo Barazarte.“Nobody can teach you what to say to parents, but I knew I had toreassure them. They are a lovely couple and were a good team whoworked together throughout labor.”“I was so confused at the time,” says Ms. Barazarte, who is 28 andlives in Acton. “I wondered if I had done something to cause it. Dr.Kramer explained that it was a genetic condition, that Eduardo’svital signs were good, and that he would be going to Children’sHospital where they have a newborn intensive care unit. I was sad,of course, but Dr. Kramer made my husband and me feel comfortablewith the situation.”Unexpected event has a happy endingThe Children’s Hospital team arrived, and Ms. Barazarte and herhusband, Javier, said good-bye to their son. During his week atChildren’s, Eduardo stayed in a humidified incubator and receivedregular treatments to his skin, which remained scaly and red.a happy babyRare genetic condition ishandled with expertiseNew parents have high hopes for their baby and, during the ninemonths of pregnancy, plenty of time to think about the birth experience,those first days together and going home. That was true ofGeraldine Morillo Barazarte, who gave birth to her first child atEmerson last June.Her son, Eduardo, is a happy, healthy baby, but he didn’t start outthat way. Eduardo was unexpectedly born with ichthyosis, a skincondition where the newborn is covered by a waxy membrane –an extra layer of skin that can distort the face and body. Because theskin cannot function normally, the baby is vulnerable for hypothermia,dehydration and infection. Ichthyosis in newborns is rare –affecting 1 in 600,000 – and represents a true emergency.“It was a little shocking,” Ms. Barazarte recalls of those momentsafter Eduardo’s birth. “His mouth was pulled open, his eyes were irritated,and he was really red. To me, he was still beautiful becausehe was my son.”Rachel Kramer, MD, the obstetrician who delivered Eduardo, movedquickly when she realized that the baby had a problem. “We calledin one of our pediatricians, who identified the condition as an inheritedsyndrome,” says Dr. Kramer. “I’ve been delivering babies for 14years, and I had never seen ichthyosis before.Ms. Barazarte, who visited him daily, was instructed on how tobathe Eduardo and perform the skin treatments he required. “Iexperienced a mixture of emotions,” his mother recalls. “MostlyI was worried.”Fortunately, once he arrived home, the baby’s condition graduallyimproved. “It took a month before I could relax,” says Ms. Barazarte.“Eduardo’s skin slowly got lighter, and now it’s gorgeous. He’s ahappy-go-lucky boy who hardly ever cries.” Genetic testing revealedthat he is among the lucky 10 percent of children born with ichthyosiswho heal completely and have no subsequent skin problems.Although Eduardo’s ichthyosis was an unexpected event, it had ahappy ending. Similarly, his mother experienced some unexpectedevents that proved to be of minimal concern. “Early in my pregnancy,I had night sickness instead of morning sickness,” she says,“and in my fourth month, I developed a rash on my hands and feet.It was very itchy, especially at night.” The condition, known as cholestasis,is fairly common. However, Timothy Hale, MD, an obstetricianat Kramer Ob/Gyn Associates, ordered a blood test to check herliver function; it was normal.When a routine ultrasound exam revealed an echogenic focus or“bright spot” on the baby’s heart valve, Ms. Barazarte was referred toone of Emerson’s maternal-fetal medicine specialists from Brighamand Women’s Hospital for a level II ultrasound. “Echogenic focus isassociated with Down syndrome,” explains Dr. Kramer. “We wereable to rule that out and reassure Geraldine.”Ms. Barazarte says she received wonderful care and much reassurancefrom Emerson staff throughout her pregnancy, labor and delivery,as well as during Eduardo’s well-baby visits. “We’re so luckyto have Emerson nearby, with all the well-trained people they havethere,” she says.3