More Hydrocephalus cases discovered in the State, HELPIN to fly them to Fortis Hospital, New Delhi
Source: The Sangai Express

Kangpokpi, September 03 2017: Following the recent discovery of Manipur's Roona Begum from the Indo-Myanmar border village of Govajang, on August 4, more Hydrocephalus cases have been discovered, particularly among the Kuki community , in Manipur .

Barely a month after Manipur's Roona Begum, Seiminsang alias Mimin Kipgen was brought to Imphal for treatment, similar cases of Hydrocephalus have been reported from Tujang Waichong subdivision in Kangpokpi district and Henglep subdivision in Churachandpur district, respectively .

The only child of a poor farmer from Tujang Waichong in Kangpokpi district, identified as Haosanglen Kipgen/ Malsom Kipgen, has been suffering from the rare condition right from inside his mother’s womb .

Ngamminthang Kipgen and Lhingneichin Kipgen, the impoverished parents have been reeling under extreme hardships even before their first son was born as he was established to be suffering from the potentially fatal disease when his mother underwent her last ultrasound test in mid August, 2016 ahead of her caesarian delivery on September 6, 2016 .

More Hydrocephalus cases discovered in the State, HELPIN to fly them to Fortis Hospital, New Delhi

The parents’ misery increased day by day with the swelling of their son's head, which increased upto more than 70 centimetres and their son underwent his first surgery barely 15 days after birth, at Raj Medicity .

The head circumference of Malsom Kipgen decreased from 70 centimetres to 22 centimetres after three surgeries but owing to extreme financial shortage the boy’s medical treatment could not be sustained and his head started to swell again and it swelled upto 55 centimetres .

Tujang Waichong is located around 55 Kms from Kangpokpi and around 100 Kms away from Imphal and is the sub divisional headquarters of Tujang Waichong sub division, after the creation of Kangpokpi district .

"Earlier we were shy of making it known to the world but when Manipur's Roona Begum’s story was told by the local journalists, we gathered courage to approach the media to tell them that another Roona Begum is also still there undiscovered in the hope that there could be assistance and sympathy for us too", lamented the poor mother .

Malsom cannot see anything till now probably owing to his condition but his mother is extremely worried about it while fearing that her only child may go completely blind .

Another similar case was also reported from Henglep sub division in Churachandpur barely a day after discovering Malsom .

Lamgousang alias Boisang Haokip, the second son of Thangboi Haokip and Lhingneilam Lamshy Haokip, was born on October 23, 2013, at a private hospital in Churachandpur but much to their dismay the child was established to be suffering from Hydrocephalus when he was barely 7 months old .

"Within a few weeks of his birth, he cried a lot and was very weak.

He also developed fever and cold and soon we observed that his head looked much bigger than before", the boy’s mother recalled and said that initially they ignored it as a common sign for babies but later it was confirmed that he is suffering from Hydrocephalus .

"I have been knocking every door including the district administration but nothing has been done for my little poor boy", Chinvei, the boy’s aunt said .

The poor parents and aunt took Boisang Haokip to Imphal and admitted him at KCC Hospital on August 26 .

Boisang Haokip’s head circumference is 75 centimetres, he is also blind but can still hear and feel sensations, like tickling and can sense his mother’s hands and others although the skin on his head has stretched so far that it has pulled his eyelids over his eyes forcing them to recede deeper into their sockets .

Fortunately, a non-profit organization, Help People's in Need [HELPIN] has approached the two Hydrocephalus patients and expressed their willingness to help them get treatment outside the State in collaboration with Milaap, India's largest crowd funding platform .

HELPIN member Jeffrey Hangshing said, "we have started a fund raising campaign for little Boisang Haokip and any kindhearted and generous person can donate for him following the link https://milaap.org/fundraisers/Boisang .

He continued that they will take both the boys with their mothers to Fortis Hospital, Gurgoan, New Delhi for giving treatment while adding that they may possibly take off by September 5 .

Meanwhile, the Kuki Students' Organization, the apex body of the Kuki student bodies has also helped the poor families and conveyed its willingness to support and render all possible help towards Help People's In Need for treatment of the poor children.