'Fringe's' feral child quandary

"Fringe"

Fox, Tuesday, April 7, 9 p.m.

Episode: "Inner Child"

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The premise

A boy is found naked in a tunnel that has been sealed off for many years. He appears to be about 10 years old and is hairless, pale and emaciated. He is brought to Boston Children's Hospital, where he is given oxygen because of apparent breathing difficulties. But FBI advisor Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble) warns that the boy, instead, must be deprived of oxygen, because he has been living in a low-oxygen environment and has adapted to it. His lungs could easily fill with fluid, the doctor warns, if he receives too high a concentration of oxygen. The boy is switched to a low-oxygen mixture, and he begins to breathe more easily. The plan is to increase his oxygen supply by 10% per hour.

Further examination of the child reveals that his intestines lack Lactobacillus acidophilus bacteria, which aid in digestion, and that he has low blood levels of vitamin D -- both of which are attributed to his underground existence. He apparently survived by eating insects and rodents. His blood pressure is normal and his heart, kidneys and ear drums are intact; though he can hear and see, he doesn't speak. He is sensitive to light, sound and emotions. He is also an empath -- and can anticipate when crimes are about to occur.

Medical questions

Could a child survive underground for years, deprived of regular food and human contact? What would be the physical and emotional impact? Could such deprivation lead him to be empathic or even psychic? Would he have to adjust slowly to higher percentages of oxygen? Why would he be hairless? Mute? Would he be deprived of vitamin D and lactobacillus?

The reality

There are many real-life stories about feral children, so such an existence isn't completely out of the question. But a life deprived of human contact would lead to an extreme inability to relate to other humans, not an innate sensitivity toward them.

"He could physically survive, assuming there was a food and water supply," says Charles A. Nelson III, chairman in pediatric developmental medicine research at Children's Hospital Boston. "But as for his psychological health, sensory deprivation would soon wreak havoc on the nervous system. It would likely be only weeks before anxiety morphed into psychosis."