They're all smiles now but it's been a rough two months for the Banks twins and their mother.
In August, 6-month-old Makenzie tested positive for salmonella her twin Makhi was also treated.
"I was given antibiotics for both of them because they said if she has it he may have it," said Takia Pope, their mother.
She said they took amoxicillin for a week but their symptoms continued.
"The diarrhea never stopped and the fever came back. They just kept sending me home saying give them Pedialyte and give them Tylenol" Pope said.
Frustrated by the response, she got at a couple of hospitals and an urgent care center, last week she took them to their pediatrician at the University of Miami.
"They collected stool and they called me last Saturday and told me it came back positive for salmonella " said Pope.
They've been getting IV antibiotics at Miami Children's Hospital since Saturday night.
"They admitted them here. They were dehydrated from all the diarrhea from, and then they found it had gotten into their blood," said Pope
The fact that salmonella had spread from their intestines to their bloodstream made it even more serious.
"And that needs to be treated because you could have complications it could actually go into the spinal fluid it could go into the bone," said Dr. Otto Ramos. He's in charge infectious disease at Miami Children's Hospital.
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Florida's Department of Health has a special lab that is now trying to determine the strain of the twins' salmonella.
Their mother believes they could be part of the national outbreak linked to Foster Farms chicken.
Because she has bought and prepared that brand of chicken.
When the health department reached out to Pope in august they explained how can babies who don't eat solid food can get salmonella.
"What I've learned is that I may have give it to them by either cleaning chicken and not washing my hands properly and fixing a bottle or from cleaning chicken too close to a bottle," Pope said.
They advised her not to wash bottles in the same sink where she defrosts or cleans chicken.
The twins' most recent blood tests have come back negative for salmonella, which means the treatment they've been getting is working. They'll be in the hospital a few more days.
"We want to make sure they go home without any evidence of infection," said Dr. Ramos.
It will take a couple of weeks for the state to confirm the strain of salmonella that infected the twins.
Of the three Miami-Dade cases confirmed to be linked to the national outbreak two were children and two had to be admitted to the hospital. They became sick in July and August and all recovered.
The health department is concerned that people might still have contaminated chicken storied it the freezer. Freezing does not destroy salmonella.
Here's a link to check the lot numbers associated with the outbreak.
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