Former Real Housewife Meghan King Edmonds Reveals Her Baby Has 'Irreversible Brain Damage'

From Prevention

• Real Housewives of Orange Country alum Meghan King Edmonds has revealed that her 13-month-old son Hart has irreversible brain damage.

• After Hart had experienced delays in physical development, stiffness in joints, and weakness, an MRI revealed that the infant has Periventricular Leukomalacia.

• Despite his diagnosis, Meghan King Edmonds feels "blessed" to care for her son and sees his situation as a gift.

Former Real Housewife of Beverly Hills star Meghan King Edmonds has shared the news that her 13-month-old son Hart has permanent brain damage.

"From the minute he was born I knew something was different with Hart," Edmonds wrote in a post on her blog. "The nurses struggled to straighten his legs to measure his length. He suckled hard, shallow, and often until I bled and he spit up black."

Despite visiting several specialists and being told that her baby was fine, the RHOC star finally received some answers. After she "begged" for an MRI, Hart underwent an elective MRI with anesthesia. Three days later, her son's neurologist called her to let her know that her son has "minor Periventricular Leukomalacia on both sides of his brain."

"I always knew. I just knew," she wrote in the post. Edmonds said her son, who is a twin, was experiencing rigidity in his muscles, delayed physical milestones, a lack of fluidity with arm and leg movements, stiffness in joints, weakness in his lower back, and a somewhat favored use of his right side.

"[His doctor] told me this mainly occurs in premies and since he was not a premie (he was born at 37 weeks gestation) she believes this damage somehow occurred 'a couple months before he was born,'" she wrote. Hart, who has "irreversible brain damage," is also at risk for developing Cerebral Palsy when he's older.

What is Periventricular Leukomalacia?

PVL is a type of brain damage in which small areas of the ventricles create holes in the white matter area of the brain. Though it's most common in premature babies, it can also occur in twins and full-term infants.

The developing ventricles in developing infants are very fragile and susceptible to injury. Changes in blood flow and infection around the time of delivery can increase a baby's risk for periventricular leukomalacia. Signs of PVL include trouble with vision, difficulty with movement, and delays in development. The outlook for infants with PVL depends on the severity of brain damage, though a diagnosis of PVL increases a baby's for Cerebral Palsy or other developmental delays and learning disabilities later in life.

Despite her son's diagnosis, Meghan King Edmonds says she will take everything one day at a time and has enrolled Hart in therapy. "I explained to Jimmy how we are not somehow compromised or punished for having a child with special needs (whatever that may or may not mean!), we are BLESSED," she wrote in the post.

"I will go on about this another time but just know that I do not see his diagnosis as anything but a gift: we were chosen to take on this special person," she wrote. "I truly feel as if we’ve doubled down and won the underdog hand. Truly."

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