The china doll baby
Slightest sneeze, cough or giggle could spell catastrophe for...
EVERY doting parent handles their newborn with care – but Mya Honca’s mum and dad have more reasons than most.
Their daughter broke a leg in the womb, and was then found to have bones so brittle that even the slightest sneeze, cough or giggle could cause a fracture.
Now her mother, Emma Tomlinson, 37, a psychiatric nurse, and father Louis Honca, a 32year-old illustrator, have to treat her like a china doll.
Miss Tomlinson, from Hull, said: ‘Mya is so fragile – it’s like she’s made of china or glass. We have to be extra careful picking her up, changing her nappy or giving her a bath. She’s so delicate even the slightest knock could result in a broken bone.
‘Her dad even made a sticker for her baby carrier which reads “Please be careful removing me, I have brittle bones”, to warn people to handle with care.’
Miss Tomlinson first learned of Mya’s problems at her 20-week scan. She said: ‘I could tell from the expression on the sonographer’s face that something was wrong. They took a look and told me my baby had bowed legs and a fractured femur.’
Mya was born via caesarean in May weighing 5lbs 15oz and three days later was diagnosed with Osteogenesis Imperfecta – or brittle bones. She will have bone infusion treatment every six weeks for the first year of her life, then every three months until she stops growing.
‘Whatever life throws at Mya we’ll be there for her and we’ll get through it,’ her mother said. ‘We’re determined to give her an incredible life.’