The Rett Syndrome complications have claimed the life of NBC News correspondent Richard Engel’s 6-year-old son, Henry. Richard through his social media handle yesterday informed about the incident by writing, "Our beloved son Henry passed away.
He had the softest blue eyes, an easy smile, and a contagious giggle," Engel wrote on Twitter, accompanied by a picture of his son. "We always surrounded him with love and he returned it, and so much more."
As per the Texas Children’s Hospital website’s memorial page, Henry died on August 9th and was diagnosed with Rett syndrome as an infant. Rett syndrome is a rare genetic neurological disorder that leads to severe physical and cognitive impairments.
The hospital’s memorial page reads, "His parents noticed that he was not reaching his developmental milestones, and he underwent numerous medical exams to discover the cause.”
Richard earlier informed through essays in public how the health-related complications associated with the syndrome have adversely affected Henry’s lifestyle and made him physically weak.
"My wife Mary had been telling Henry I was coming home, but because of his condition it’s hard to know what’s sinking in," Engel wrote in the essay, "He still struggles with basic things like picking up a ball with both hands."
But what is the Rett Syndrome all about and why does it become important for you to know about this life-threatening ailment?
Rett Syndrome is an incurable rare developmental disorder that initiates the loss of essential motor skills in the affected person including language, as per the health experts of the matter. This syndrome typically affects females.
The memorial page of the hospital on the Rett syndrome reads, "(Rett syndrome) typically affects girls after their first birthday, robbing them of learned skills and leaving them with cognitive deficits, loss of speech, and a variety of motor difficulties.”
A genetic test revealed Henry had a mutation in his MECP2 gene, a protein that helps neurons function. MECP2 mutations cause Rett syndrome, the memorial page read.
Among newborns, the Rett syndrome develops in a purely unexpected manner for the first half a year, though afterward, they begin to lose skills such as crawling, walking, communicating, or using their hands.
With the due passage of time, these complications will possibly progress to include muscle coordination and communication issues, seizures, and cognitive impairments.
Richard and his wife noticed changes in Henry only after six months when he was failing to continue to sit up without support. The couple took their son to a medical check-up after he was unable to perform the motor function and was facing issues in speaking.
Thoughts and condolences were pouring in for the couple over their irreparable loss MSNBC's "The Katie Phang Show" host Katie Phang said she was lifting Engel and his family "in love and support."
She wrote, "Such devastating news. The loss of a child is a pain that no parent should ever endure," Phang wrote. "Our deepest condolences to you and Mary and the rest of your family."
Jacob Soboroff who is also a correspondent with NBC and MSNBC wrote, "Sweet Henry's memory" will be a "blessing. We are all so lucky to have gotten to know him through the stories you and Mary so bravely shared," Soboroff wrote. "I am so very, very sorry. Sending you love."