Child passes out right after birth; turns out he was overdosing on tobacco through mother's vein

In a hospital in Ahmedabad, a normal birth of a child quickly turned into a medical emergency after the newborn, who looked seemingly healthy, was found with 3000% higher nicotine than the permissible levels for adults.

Initially, medical professionals suspected that the child suffered from birth asphyxiation, a condition caused by oxygen deprivation during delivery. But the baby exhibited peculiar symptoms that puzzled the medical team.

A thorough investigation into the newborn’s critical condition revealed an unexpected factor behind the medical crisis: alarmingly high levels of nicotine in the baby’s bloodstream. This shocking discovery was attributed to the mother’s addiction to chewing tobacco.

According to reports, the Caesarean section delivery took place at a hospital in Mehsana on June 20, where a young mother gave birth to a 2.4kg baby.

The newborn failed to cry, turned blue, and had to be immediately put on a ventilator. As the baby’s heart began to weaken and blood pressure dropped.

Doctors then made a critical decision to transfer him to a specialized neonatal hospital in Ahmedabad in an attempt to save his life.

The child was born with nicotine levels of 60 ng/ml, a staggering 3000% above the permissible levels for adults.

Recalling the case, Dr. Ashish Mehta, a senior neonatologist, told TOI, “When the child came to us, he appeared to be a healthy child in a coma. Initially, we diagnosed him with birth asphyxia, but children with this condition usually suffer significant neurological damage, leading to paralysis, lack of reflexes, and muscle weakness. However, this child showed good muscle tone and strength with no apparent neurological deficits. He simply did not match the profile of a child with asphyxia.”

In an effort to unravel the mystery ailment, the medical team delved into the child and mother’s history.

A conversation with the gynecologist provided a vital clue. It turned out that the mother, who had a history of asthma, had been consuming tobacco, either in sachets or raw form from local pan shops, around 10-15 times a day.

This habit exposed her fetus to dangerously high levels of nicotine through her bloodstream.

Drawing from experiences in Australia and the UK, where infants were born addicted to cocaine or heroin due to their mothers’ dependencies, Dr. Mehta and his team decided to conduct a toxicology screen.

“Our suspicions were confirmed when the test results revealed insanely high nicotine levels in the child’s system,” Dr. Mehta explained.

Dr. Vishal Gohil, a neonatologist involved in the case, highlighted the distinction between this situation and opioid addictions.

“Unlike infants dependent on opioids who require carefully managed doses to handle withdrawal, this child simply needed supportive care until his body naturally eliminated the nicotine,” he clarified.

After five days of treatment, the baby started showing signs of recovery and was subsequently discharged.

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