"But why can't we kiss a baby?": Heartbroken mother says losing newborn to Herpes virus was "absolutely traumatising"

Kissing a new-born baby might seem the most natural thing in the world - and an instinct among proud new parents. However, one heartbroken mum is warning people not to do it - after losing her daughter to a viral infection.

Hailey Riches knew there was something wrong with her little one - Violet-May Constantinou - after she refused to feed and had yellow skin. And she was later advised to take Violet to hospital as she "started getting worse".

Aged just eight days old and after a series of tests, medics finally found she had contracted neonatal herpes (HSV-1) - a serious infection in newborns caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV).

Violet was immediately given anti-viral medication, but her condition quickly deteriorated, and she began to experience seizures. She was later taken to Southampton Hospital and placed in intensive care, but doctors found the newborn was having acute liver failure and despite being moved to a London hospital and put on highest priority in the UK for a liver transplant, she tragically died at the age of just a month.

They told 25-year-old Hailey and dad, fiancée Dimitri Constantinou, 30, they would never know where the herpes came from. But the pair have since vowed to spread awareness for people with cold sores, or those prone to the virus, to keep away from newborn babies.

Hailey said: "I do see it online many times people saying 'but why can't we kiss a baby?' when it is not their baby - it frustrates me because of having gone through this situation. This is why you have to be slightly protective and be aware. If you have got a cold sore don't go near a baby because it is deadly and can kill them.

"This is not to scare new mums or pregnant women. It is to say if you are not feeling right in yourself and if the baby is not feeling right then to be persistent and get it checked."

Hayley, who works as a specialty coordinator for NHS, said she had a "normal" pregnancy and gave birth to daughter Violet via an emergency caesarean on March 22, 2023. However, despite the newborn seeming "fine and well", she noticed Violet started to feed less, looked fatigued and had yellow skin.

A health visitor advised Hayley to take her to Worthing Hospital - where she was checked with a jaundice machine. But despite being sent home, everything "started to get worse", Hayley said. When Violet was just eight days old and was still having troubles feeding, Hayley took her back into hospital, where a nurse discovered she had a high temperature.

Hayley was admitted with sepsis which led to blood checks and a lumber puncture, ultimately revealing Violet had neonatal herpes (HSV-1) - a serious infection in newborns caused by the herpes simplex virus (HSV) which can be contracted before, during, or after birth. Type 1 (HSV-1) is mostly spread by oral contact through kissing, sharing drinks or utensils, and causes infections in or around the mouth, like cold sores.

Hayley, of Billingshurst, Sussex, added: "It was absolutely traumatising. The worst time of our family's life - I don't think our family has ever gone through such a traumatic time. Every day something was happening and she was deteriorating further - it affected her brain, her lungs, she then had a cardiac arrest at one point where we watched her being resuscitated for nine minutes. It just got worse and worse and it was time to say goodbye at the end."

Doctors told mum Hailey and dad Dimitri, who works as a driver for builders merchants, they would never know where the herpes came from. Hailey added: “I don't have genital herpes, none of my family or myself had a cold sore outbreak. They said it is most likely from an outsource but they are not sure who. Anyone can spread the virus without even knowing. Even if you have got no symptoms you might still pass it on.”