Barry Keoghan almost lost arm to same disease that left woman without half her bum and privates

Barry Keoghan suffered from a serious illness that risked him needing his arm amputated just before filming for The Banshees of Inisherin started.

Necrotising fasciitis is a dangerous and life-threatening condition that very often requires emergency surgery and sometimes requires dead tissue to be surgically removed.

That's what happened to American woman Lacey Pepper, who had 25 percent of her left buttock and upper thigh removed as well as half of the left side of her genitals after she was diagnosed with the disease.

Dr Suzanne Wylie of IQdoctor told LADbible that for necrotising fasciitis 'treatment almost always involves emergency surgery to remove infected and dead tissue', and stressed that it was a serious threat to life.

Keoghan has a scar on his arm from the disease, but he told GQ that while amputation was a prospect he was thankfully able to keep the arm.

Barry Keoghan suffered from necrotising fasciitis just before filming for The Banshees of Inisherin started (Dia Dipasupil/FilmMagic)

The actor said he remembered asking doctors whether he was going to die or not, and being told: "Well, we don't know."

Fortunately, Keoghan managed to recover without the need for amputation and when film director Martin McDonagh visited his actor in hospital he said Keoghan's arm was 'puffed up' but the young man was in high spirits.

"I’m not sure if he was on a lot of meds, but he seemed to shrug it off,” the director said of Keoghan's illness.

“We were only about four days out from shooting, and his arm was puffed up. But he was like, ‘Yeah, no, I’m going to be fine - I’ll see you on Tuesday.’

"I went to the hospital thinking, 'S**t, is he going to die? Let alone, is he going to make the movie'. But I came out of there energized and looking forward to it."

Keoghan, for his part, remembered the sound of his hospital heart monitor and his director telling him to think of the moment when he was nominated for an Oscar, and he was indeed nominated.

Keoghan said there was a risk his arm needed to be amputated, and doctors didn't have an answer when he asked if he would die (Araya Doheny/Getty Images for SAG-AFTRA Foundation)

What is necrotising fasciitis

Dr Wylie explained the disease and how it acts, saying: "Necrotising fasciitis is a rare but very serious bacterial infection that spreads rapidly through the deeper layers of the skin and the tissues beneath it.

"It is often referred to as a 'flesh-eating' infection, although the bacteria do not actually eat the tissue. Instead, they release toxins that destroy tissue and trigger a severe inflammatory response, which can quickly become life-threatening if not recognised and treated promptly."

The doctor explained that people typically contracted necrotising fasciitis 'through a break in the skin'.

"This could be something as obvious as a surgical wound, cut or burn, but it can also follow something much smaller, such as an insect bite, a scratch or even a minor injury that people may barely notice," Dr Wylie said.

"In some cases, no obvious entry point can be identified."

One of the early issues with detecting the disease is how it can 'resemble a much more common skin infection such as cellulitis', leaving people unaware of how much danger they're in.

His director came to see him in hospital as he was worried Keoghan might die, but fortunately the actor bounced back (Matt Winkelmeyer/FilmMagic)

The signs of necrotising fasciitis

The NHS says the disease can develop in a matter of hours or it could take days, but there are early symptoms and ones which develop later on.

While the infections normally happen near cuts and wounds there are times when there's no clear damage to your skin.

The early signs of the flesh-eating disease are:

• Intense pain or loss of feeling – the pain may seem much worse than you would usually expect from a cut or wound, if there is one
• Redness and swelling of the skin around the affected area (redness may be harder to see on black or brown skin)
• Flu-like symptoms, such as a high temperature, headache and tiredness

Necrotising fasciitis can then develop later symptoms including:

• Vomiting and diarrhoea
• Confusion
• Blisters or black, purple or grey blotches on the skin (blotches may be less obvious on black or brown skin)

Since it is a very dangerous disease the NHS advises that if you are suffering from the signs of necrotising fasciitis then you should call 999 or go to A&E.

If you're unsure how you feel then you're advised to call 111 and talk about your symptoms.

Dr Wylie said: "The key message for the public is not to become alarmed by every cut or scrape, as necrotising fasciitis remains exceptionally uncommon.

"Most minor wounds heal without any complications, particularly if they are cleaned properly and kept covered while healing.

"However, people should seek urgent medical attention if they develop rapidly worsening pain around a wound, spreading redness or swelling, blisters, skin discolouration, a fever or if they feel significantly unwell, particularly if the pain seems out of proportion to what can be seen.

"Trusting your instincts is important, as prompt assessment and treatment can make a significant difference to the outcome."