LOWELL, Mich.-- A mother in Kent County has a warning for other parents after her baby woke up with a burn on the side of his face. The mother of the seven-month-old says her baby was hurt after his pacifier was suction cupped to his face while he slept.
Kristen Milhone says she read all of the baby books about what to do and what not to do before her son, Jack, was born.
"As you become a parent, you read so much and you hear so much and your doctors tell you so much," said Milhone. "It's drilled into your head."
There's one thing she couldn't find in any book: the possible dangers of a pacifier, particularly the Philips Avent Soothie pacieifer. Milhone says they give out this kind of pacifier at the hospital and they're supposed to be safer and more sanitary.
"I picked him up and was playing with him and then all of the sudden I saw his bump on the side of his head," said Milhone. "I got up to turn the light on and he had this blister. It almost looked like a chemical burn."
Milhone says Jack fell asleep on top of the pacifier and it suctioned to his face, leaving behind a suction burn when he woke up the next day. They only figured it out after a trip to the hospital where they realized the size of the burn was the same size as the pacifier.
"We went to the emergency room and they didn't even know what it was, "said Milhone. "They thought it was ringworm at first.
Milhone says they have to put antibiotic ointment on the burn and go back to doctors for follow up appointments. If it doesn’t heal they have to take Jack to the burn clinic or even a plastic surgeon. Because his skin is so thin, the burn could leave a pretty bad scar.
“It’s just terrifying, like you don’t do all this stuff and then this one thing you may do is like suction cup a pacifier to your child’s head," said Milhone. "You’re supposed to be able to have that. It’s just kind of scary.”
Milhone says she's going to look for other pacifiers they can use instead of this one and just want to warn other parents that something like this could happen.
Fox 17 reached out to Philips, who could not be reached for comment by airtime.
