Man given 10% chance of survival after getting flesh-eating bacteria from popular holiday spot
A man was given low chances of survival after contracting a rare and life-threatening infection while overseas.
Brian Roush, a Florida native, had been on holiday in the Bahamas to celebrate the New Year with his girlfriend when he scraped his ankle.
The 62-year-old's travels weren't ruined by this small injury, though, as he went on waterslides and swam with pigs on his getaway.
But after he left the islands to return to his home in Fort Lauderdale on 3 January, he became 'violently ill', according to a GoFundMe set up by his daughter, Brittany.
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"Within hours, he was admitted to a hospital in Fort Lauderdale for severe septic shock, was intubated, and placed on a ventilator," the page explained, with a goal of $10,000 set.
Speaking to WFLA, Brittany said that her dad had tripped and scraped his ankle, with the subsequent disease moving quickly.
She added that his 'ankle erupted into blisters' in the emergency room, with doctors believing that he had contracted necrotising fasciitis, a life-threatening infection which affects the deeper layers of the skin.
The extremely rare condition can develop within hours or over a number of days, with the infection usually happening near a cut or wound.
Sometimes there is no obvious damage to the skin in the affected area.
Known also as 'flesh-eating disease', it causes tissue to die immediately, while symptoms may include intense pain or loss of feeling, swelling of the skin around the affected area, and flu-like symptoms.
Later on, you may experience vomiting and diarrhoea, confusion, blisters, or black, purple or grey blotches on the skin.
By the time Brian was taken in for emergency surgery, doctors removed the affected tissue, but he had gone into sepsis, which is the potential fatal immune response to an infection.
The GoFundMe detailed: “Sepsis was wreaking havoc. Brian’s liver, kidneys, and lungs failed while he was in septic shock and he was placed in an induced coma on life support.
"His ankle became gangrenous, and most of the flesh from his ankle to his lower calf had to be removed down to the bone.”
But as doctors gave the dad a 10 percent chance of survival, he 'miraculously' started to recover, 'after a week of nonstop antibiotics and life support'.
His lungs and liver started to recover, but this doesn't mean that the father is fully healthy yet, as he now needs to be transferred to a long-term care facility.
This is because Brian has to re-learn how to walk and use his limbs, though he has kept a 'positive attitude despite waking up to this nightmare'.
According to Cleveland Clinic, you can minimise the chances of contracting necrotising fasciitis by cleaning wounds with soap and water before covering them with a clean bandage.
Avoiding swimming pools or any other body of water is also recommended if you have a break in the skin.
Joshua Nair