Twins Melody (top) and Lyric Allen were born amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Melody, like her mother, was born with a condition called craniofacial microsomia and needed care through in-person and telehealth appointments provided by Seattle Children’s Craniofacial team in the immediate days, weeks and months following her diagnosis.
Just weeks after the state of Washington went under shelter-in-place guidelines, Jenalysse Renaud gave birth to two beautiful babies on April 17, 2020. Renaud and Donovan Allen, the twins’ musician father, named them Melody and Lyric.
Melody, a whole two minutes older than her little brother, faces a few challenges. Her left eye is smaller than her right and is being monitored for potential blindness. In addition, she likely has hearing loss or deafness in one ear, all features of hemifacial microsomia. After several tests, she was also diagnosed with malrotation— an abnormality in which the intestine does not form in the correct way in the abdomen—at just a month old. Thankfully, she shouldn’t face any prolonged consequences from that diagnosis after undergoing corrective surgery in May.
Renaud herself was born with hemifacial microsomia, the same condition Melody now faces. Craniofacial microsomia, also known as hemifacial microsomia, is a congenital condition in which the tissues on one side of the face are underdeveloped—as well as some hearing loss. Renaud was also born with a solitary left kidney. Read full post »
