Mohammad Khan’s son suffered from birth asphyxia when he was born but the hospital he was born at did not have the machines required to treat the condition. As a result, his brain could not get enough oxygen and was permanently damaged.

Mr Khan, who is a resident of the federal capital, says the unavailability of oxygen in the first few minutes after his son’s life has not only affected his son’s life, but also that of the whole family.

“My wife and I spend most of our time looking after our 10-year-old son, which means we do not have time to socialise. He also gets aggressive around strangers because of which relatives and friends have stopped visiting us,” he said.

“I used to go out with friends at first, but as he is growing up, it is becoming difficult for my wife to handle him. That is why I have stopped going out with friends,” he said.

Mohammad said he had taken his son to see quite a few doctors, all of whom agreed that the lack of oxygen in the first few minutes after he was born has caused irreversible damage to his son’s brain, who has almost no chances of living a normal life.

Damage caused to the brain due to lack of oxygen during or soon after birth is referred to as birth asphyxia as it can lead to hearing loss, mental retardation and other disabilities.

It is defined as the failure to initiate and sustain normal breathing at birth. Seven million newborns die each year across the world due to birth asphyxia with most of the deaths recorded in developing countries.

Two thirds of the world’s neonatal deaths occur in just 10 countries, mostly in Asia, and Pakistan is number three among these countries with an estimated 300,000 neonatal deaths annually.

According to the World Health Organisation around four million babies go through birth asphyxia annually, of which 1.2 million die and the same number develop disorders including epilepsy, mental retardation, learning disabilities, blindness and hearing loss.

Talking to Dawn, the head of the Department of Neonatology at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) Prof Dr Haider Shirazi said that if a baby does not breath in time, it needs to be given immediate treatment to avoid permanent damage.

In developed countries, a large number of children are saved because it can be easily birth asphyxia can be easily confirmed at the time of birth, he said.

“However, in a developing country like Pakistan, there are no proper facilities. Though the machine needed for treating children with this condition only costs Rs2.5 million, they are only available at the Jinnah Hospital in Lahore and now also at Pims,” he said.

“A newborn with birth asphyxia is kept in the machine which is like a blanket filled with liquid that keeps the temperature constant at 34 degree Celsius. The baby has to be kept in the machine for 72 hours and treatment has to be provided within six hours after birth in order to prevent permanent damage,” he explained.

During this process, the heart rate and blood pressure of the baby is continuously monitored and a special devise records the baby’s brain waves.

“At Pims we have a team of doctors and nurses who are trained in the process and four assistant professors supervise them constantly,” he said.

Dr Shirazi said the machine should be made available in all districts and said this will help save many lives.

“Children who suffer from the condition and who could not be treated on time also require a lot of time and financial resources to take care of. By investing in these machines, we can address the issue and minimise the effects of the problem,” he said.

Pims media coordinator Dr Waseem Khawaja said that because Pakistan is a developing country, the effects of the illness are likely to be greater than they are in developed countries.

Poverty, illiteracy, poor hygiene, lack of clean water and sanitation, inability to recognise symptoms and inadequate access to medical care increase the risks of morbidity following birth asphyxia.

Babies who do not receive enough oxygen to their brain during and after birth are at risk of brain damage, The problem usually occurs just before or during delivery and is often unpredictable.

The problem can only be addressed if well trained professionals are available, he said.

“Studies have shown that even in developed countries, 15pc to 19pc of infants who suffer moderate to severe asphyxia are disabled by eight years of age. Once the damage to the brain is done, it is irreversible,” he added.

Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2016