Gwinnett Daily Post

Tripp Halstead, a Winder toddler recovering from a head injury when a tree branch hit him while at a daycare center.

A surgery performed late Thursday night on Tripp Halstead revealed that bacteria that attached itself to a pump in his stomach was released into his body.

The Winder toddler has multiple levels of infection, his father Bill wrote on Facebook, along with bacterial meningitis and an inflammation in his ventricles. Thursday's surgery removed a shunt and Baclofen pump, which caused a "bacterial shower." Bill also wrote that the blood infection his son has is called Sepsis.

"We know we are in the best place we could be to help Tripp through this latest obstacle, we caught it early which is to Tripp's benefit," Bill wrote.

Halstead's mother Stacy wrote on Friday morning that one intensive care unit doctor told her the infection is very serious and life threatening. On Friday evening, she wrote that her son was resting.

"Tripp is still sleeping," Stacy wrote. "No new news to report, they are just keeping a close eye on him. He is hooked up to every monitor possible, and sleeping."

The Baclofen pump was installed last month, and the shunt was inserted in December. The pump is designed to restore normal balance and reduce muscle hyperactivity, and the shunt is to help with swelling on his brain.

Halstead, 2, suffered a head injury on Oct. 29 from a fallen tree limb outside his Barrow County daycare. The toddler has undergone surgeries and performed rehabilitation at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston and more recently at Scottish Rite.

The third surgery in about five weeks leaves the date for Halstead's return home unknown. The family had scheduled at least two departure dates from the hospital in the last month only to have them canceled because of complications.