13-month-old weighs 17kg, Latest Others News - The New Paper
News

13-month-old weighs 17kg

This article is more than 12 months old

Babies his age normally begin to talk or walk.

But 13-month-old Kyairiel Mikhail Khairul Syafiq has a more serious problem. The toddler from Tampin, Negeri Sembilan, suffers from overgrowth syndrome.

He weighs a hefty 17kg, is 81cm tall and is struggling to maintain head control, the New Straits Times reported. And he continues to gain weight.

The average weight and height of a baby his age is 10kg and 77cm respectively.

His father, Mr Khairul Syafiq Nor Azmi, 27, said Kyairiel was hospitalised for a lung infection and seizure attacks when he was a mere 25 days old.

Said Mr Khairul: "We thought it was common seizures, but it grew more intense. He began having as many as eight seizure attacks a day."

Kyairiel suffers from visual impairment, and his size prevents him from moving normally like other babies.

Said the father: "We can only put him in a prone position. When he is tired of lying down, he would cry to be picked up and we would try to help him sit with support."

He said his wife, Ms Yusnurlina Mohd Yusof, 25, had to quit her job as a sales promoter to take care of Kyairiel as he needs special attention.

The couple also have a five-year-old son and three-year-old daughter.

Mr Khairul, who earns only RM1,000 (S$380) a month as a salesman at a hypermarket, said he had to borrow money from family or relatives every month to take care of Kyairiel.

He claims he spends about RM400 a month on special diapers. He also has to hire a car at least once a week to take the boy for hospital appointments.

While doctors have not determined the actual cause for Kyairiel's condition, they have told the family that it is a rare case which occurs in just three out of 1,000 babies.