18-Day-Old Newborn Dies After Contracting Fatal Meningitis Likely From A Kiss In Iowa

An 18-day-old Iowa newborn girl, Mariana Reese Sifrit who was placed on life support last week for contracting fatal meningitis caused by the herpes virus (HSV-1), died Tuesday, her mother confirmed the news in an emotional Facebook post.

"Our princess Mariana Reese Sifrit gained her angel wings at 8:41 a.m. this morning in her daddy's arms and her mommy right beside her. She is now no longer suffering and is with the Lord," Nicole Sifrit, the newborn’s mother wrote in a Facebook post.

The grieving parents had shared their daughter’s story last week in order to raise awareness about the potential dangers of having a newborn come in contact with other people just after birth. Nicole and her husband Shane Sifrit welcomed Mariana on July 1, just a week ahead of their wedding. However, just two hours after the couple exchanged their vows, they noticed that the newborn stopped eating and "she had quit breathing, and all her organs just started to fail," Nicole Sifrit told CNN affiliate WHO.

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According to WHO, doctors told the couple at Blank Children's Hospital in Des Moines that their baby had contracted meningitis HSV-1, caused by the herpes virus which causes cold sores and only rarely leads to viral meningitis, as per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Meningitis can spread through sexual contact or from a mother to her baby during pregnancy as it is caused by bacteria, fungi and other types of germs, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland.

Mariana's parents were both tested and found negative for the virus, the doctors said it could have come from someone else who visited the newborn after birth. "They touch her, and then she touches her mouth with her hand," Nicole explained. It was difficult to exactly point out how the baby caught the virus, but the mother warned others that they should be careful while they let others handle their baby.

"Keep your babies isolated, don't let just anyone come visit them, and make sure they are constantly washing their hands. Don't let people kiss your baby, and make sure they ask before they pick up your baby," she warned, KTLA 5 reported.

Dr. Tanya Altmann, a pediatrician at Calabasas Pediatrics in California, said that "viral meningitis is transmitted through close casual contact. However, she caught the virus and then developed meningitis. ... It is very common to catch the virus, but very rarely does it develop into meningitis."

"The first two months after a child is born are very critical, as a virus can rapidly spread and cause serious illness in newborns," she added, according to KTLA 5.

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Mariana wasn't expected to survive 24 hours after her diagnosis, her mother Nicole said on Facebook. She was on medication to "control seizures, kidney dialysis and the vessels around her heart were leaking oxygen," one post said. On Monday, Nicole posted a heartbreaking update about her daughter’s condition.

"My heart is crushed, my baby is declining fast," Nicole wrote. "She has no brain activity and her lungs and heart are failing along with her kidneys and liver. They are running out of options for her."

A GoFundMe had been set up to help the family with medical expenses for the treatment of their daughter.