Tessa Evans was born without nose in UK due to a rare disease known as arhinia. Now she is 17 months old. The condition means Tessa has no sense of smell and no sinuses but she can cough, sneeze and catch a cold. And despite her difficulties, she always has a smile on her face, her mother Gráinne says.
The 17-month-old has complete congenital arhinia, which
is so rare there are only around 40 cases reported in medical literature.
Tessa’s condition was detected in a 20 week scan, but the
follow up revealed that the unborn infant was perfectly healthy. However she
was born with some other problems related to the condition, such as a small
hole in her heart and eyesight problems.
Tessa will begin treatment at Great Ormond Street
Hospital which involves implanting a nose shaped mould. An incision will be
made along her hairline and the mould will be inserted where her nose should
be. She will get bigger ones as she grows.
"I hope Tessa's story inspires other people and
families, I never want any child to be unloved or left alone because of their
differences and diagnosis," said Mrs Evans.
