Baby Face, photo by Harold Davis.

Obviously I am prejudiced. I think Katie Rose has the perfect baby face.

Katie Rose had her first monthly shot of Synagis last week. Synagis (the generic name is Palivizumab) is a drug created using monoclonal antibodies produced by recombinant DNA technology. It is somewhat effective in preventing Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), or at least making the symptoms milder.

In the United States, 60% of infants get RSV each year. For most of them, this is no big deal, and manifests itself as a mild respiratory cold. But for a 24-week preemie with damaged lungs like Katie Rose, RSV could be a very serious matter. So three cheers for the new technology that came up with Synagis (it wasn’t around when Julian was born eleven years ago, so we had to quarantine him that first winter). Yes we can!

The dosage of Synagis is a precise matter, so they had to weigh Katie Rose before the double shot (one in each thigh). At almost twelve pounds, she’s six times her birth weight.