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Man Left Paralysed After Eating Under-Cooked Chicken

Man Left Paralysed After Eating Under-Cooked Chicken

He has since managed to get back up and about and has set himself a 5km challenge

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

A man was left paralysed after eating under cooked chicken and contracting food poisoning.

Richard Jackson, from Brighton, picked up a mild case of food poisoning after spending a week in London, but shockingly it triggered a rare auto-immune condition called Transverse Myelitis, which left him on a ventilator in intensive care.

The 31-year-old says he became unwell last December and was admitted to St Richard's Hospital but that his condition quickly deteriorated leaving him unable to move his arms or even swallow.

Wessex News Agency

He said: "I developed mild food poisoning from under-cooked chicken which triggered a severe rare auto-immune condition leaving me paralysed.

"I was admitted to St Richard's Hospital in Chichester as I started having problems being able to walk.

"I quickly deteriorated and within 24 hours I was unable to use my arms or even swallow. I was delirious and drifting in and out of consciousness.

"At this point the doctors did not know what was happening but they knew they had to do something quickly.

"I was moved to intensive care, placed on a ventilator and effectively switched off in a coma for ten days to give myself the best chances of survival and give doctors the time to work out what was happening."

Doctors discovered that Jackson's immune system had attacked his spinal cord, which left him paralysed from the neck down.

Once coming around, Jackson slowly began to regain some movement in his arms and feet and medics were able to remove the ventilator and feeding tubes.

But that was just the start of his recovery journey - due to being bed-bound for so long Jackson lost a significant amount of muscle and all his core strength.

In the following three-months Jackson attended a purpose-built neuro rehabilitation centre at the hospital, called Donald Wilson House, and has heaped praise on the care he received.

Wessex News Agency

He added: "I was given 24-hour nursing care, a private room, daily physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy.

"Each mealtime I was winched into a wheelchair and taken to a communal room for meals and to meet the other people there.

"Physio started immediately. I could only manage a few minutes at first but with all the attention I showed strong signs of recovery.

"In just under two months they taught me to sit, eat, speak clearly, transfer to wheelchairs by myself, stand brushing my teeth, get into cars from a wheelchair and greatest of all, to be able to walk again."

He also praised the staff saying they had given him 'the best shot at achieving my best outcome'.

"Although I haven't made a full recovery and still have a lot of issues, I have everything to thank Donald Wilson for as I have recovered my mobility and a near normal quality of life," he said.

Now he's set himself the challenge of running a 5km to raise funds for Donald Wilson Neuro Rehab.

His GoFundMe page, which you can donate to here, has already raised more than £1,000 of its £1,250 target.

Talking about the challenge, Jackson said: "It may not sound far, but it's a miracle that I can even attempt this." Best of luck, mate.

Featured Image Credit: Wessex News Agency

Topics: uk news