[TheHag]

HOUSTON – The Centers for Disease Control recommends children 11 years of age and older receive the bacterial meningitis vaccine. But a Houston mother says children even younger should be vaccinated after her daughter nearly died from the disease.

Sakura Barden does not always feel well enough to talk, but everyday she amazes doctors by beating a what they say should have taken her life.

"They were saying she’s not going to make it through the night," said Helen Barden, Sakura’s mother. "’If you haven’t made arrangements you might want to’ and you know every single night my heart was just breaking."

Helen Barden has pictures of her happy, healthy two-year-old taken before everything spiraled out of control in December.

"She was totally fine at 4 a.m. and by 10 a.m. she wasn’t moving," said Helen.

Barden says the disease came with no warning. She called 9-1-1 after her daughter measured a temperature of 107.8 degrees.

"By 5 p.m. her lungs and kidneys had completely shut down," Helen said.

Doctors diagnosed Sakura with bacterial meningitis. Even today, the little girl’s in pain recovering from her arm amputation. All her fingers and toes will soon be gone.

Still, Sakura’s considered a medical marvel because she’s alive.

"She’s going to be a special, a special little girl," said Dr. Travis Crook of Texas Children’s Hospital, who’s cared for Sakura the past two months.

While Sakura’s mother wants children to get vaccinated at two years of age, Crook says there isn’t enough research to support it.

"We recommend that all children get vaccinated once they hit 11-years-old," said Crook.

The CDC confirms that bacterial meningitis is very rare in young children and does not recommend kids between 2- and 10-years-old get the vaccine because it has not been proven to be effective at that age grou

"There’s just not enough data to support giving the vaccine," said Crook.

But Helen says she wishes her daughter had been vaccinated.

"I think everybody needs to know that it’s something that kids can get," said Helen.

Helen has since been asked to testify before Congress and the CDC in April about kids getting the vaccination at a younger age.

Meanwhile, Sakura has years of rehab ahead of her. Anyone wanting to help in her recovery can look up Sakura’s Glimpse of Hope at any Capital One Bank branch.

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[Sybil]

@ two years?! How about younger than that? Let's go for two weeks old because my niece, Raven, contracted the same type of bacterial Meningitis @ 2 MONTHS OLD!! Had my grandmother, whom I call Nanny, a nurse at that time, NOT gotten Raven to the hospital on her gut feeling, my little Punky (that's her nickname) would not be here today.

[dooshman]

Such a beautiful baby.

This link, to the CDC's Website, provides a detailed explanation of how a variety of meningitis vaccines work, and what age groups are recommended to get them.

http://www.cdc.gov/meningitis/about/faq.html