Panic spreads in Georgia as flesh-eating disease strikes fourth victim in one month

[wfgodot]

Panic spreads across Georgia as FOURTH victim of flesh-eating bacteria has leg amputated
(Daily Mail)

A fourth victim of flesh-eating bacteria in Georgia lost his leg when doctors were forced to amputate it three weeks after he received a cut in the water.

The latest outbreak of the infection has left neighbors terrified to go in Lake Sinclair, afraid they'll come down with the rare and serious disease, as well.

Three other victims are recovering in the hospital after picking up the bacteria from cuts and wounds across the state. Doctors say the cases are not related.

Aimee Copeland, the 24-year-old graduate student whose battle with the bacteria first drew international attention to the horrific medical condition, sat up in bed for several hours.

She continues to recover doctors were forced to amputate her leg, her foot and both her hands as the necrotizing fasciitis spread rapidly through her body.

Paul Bales, the latest victim, was standing in Lake Sinclair near Milledgeville, preparing to install an expansion onto his dock when he cut his leg in the water on May 1, WGXA-TV reports.
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'Like, over the last three decades only about 200 cases nationwide. And then all of a sudden we've three or four in the last month,' Mike Bales told WGXA.
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The second victim of the flesh-eating disease, Lana Kuykendall, 36, has had seven surgeries to remove the infected flesh and remains in critical condition at Greenville Memorial Hospital in South Carolina, near her home.

The third victim, Bobby Vaughn, 33, has been upgraded to good condition after doctors removed two pounds of flesh from his groin.
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much more, with a map of the locations and a sidebar about necrotizing fasciitis, at DM link above

 

[Tugela]

It is the start of the zombie epidemic!!

 

[wfgodot]

That phrase in the last paragraph "....upgraded to good condition after doctors removed two pounds of flesh from his groin" seems sort of oxymoronic - kind of cold comfort!

 

[badhorsie]

I remember that we had a cluster of cases here in 1994, it never did amount to anything, although terrible for those affected

 

[Gardenlady]

Yes, I seem to remember some kind of outbreak in the 90s that eventually petered out... Hopefully this goes the same way...

 

[Peliman]

Best way to avoid this is what your mama used to say. Wash your cuts and scrapes with soap and water.

 

[Kat]

We had an outbreak on one of the other islands and it was caused by water run off from floods into the body of water.

 

[not_my_kids]

I have nothing insightful to offer except that necrotic diseases scare the everloving crap out of me.

 

[QueenD]

Best way to avoid this is what your mama used to say. Wash your cuts and scrapes with soap and water.

Just asking, would it make a difference if your cut was exposed in these body of waters?

 

[Peliman]

Just asking, would it make a difference if your cut was exposed in these body of waters?

Not just these bodies of waters but any bodies of water that can contain any number or different bacteria that get into a cut, scrape, abrasion. The infection itself is not limited to water exposure and can occur from other minor injuries and surgical incisions, it's just rare to have it occur.

Type I describes a polymicrobial infection, whereas Type II describes a monomicrobial infection. Many types of bacteria can cause necrotizing fasciitis (e.g., Group A streptococcus (Streptococcus pyogenes), Staphylococcus aureus, Vibrio vulnificus, Clostridium perfringens, Bacteroides fragilis, Aeromonas hydrophila[2]). Such infections are more likely to occur in people with compromised immune systems.

Over 70% of cases are recorded in patients with one of the following clinical situations: immunosuppression, diabetes, alcoholism/drug abuse, malignancies, and chronic systemic diseases. It occasionally occurs in people with an apparently normal general condition

I'm not a microbiologist and maybe joypath can jump in here. In general this infection can be caused for a number of reasons but is described as rare.

Cleansing any wound or scrape that may have collected bacteria of any type greatly reduces the chance of this happening.

 

[BuzzieCat]

This freaks me out. I try to stay calm and remember it's still a rare condition, but still. Eek. I read somewhere that Ms. Copeland's case was caused by Aeromonas hydrophila. Don't know about the others, but apparently these different germs can be just about anywhere. I think one man got cut doing yard work, Ms. Copeland and another man both got theirs after being in the water, and the new mother who contracted it - I don't know. What confuses me about the new mother is that she had a bruise-like area on the back of her leg. Where did that come from? Was the bruise the point of entry or did the germ(s) spread to her leg?

 

[Peliman]

Think this is number 5...Florida

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/topst...and-to-flesh-eating-bacteria?odyssey=obinsite

Starke man dies after fight with necrotizing fasciitis

Paul Burger was mowing the lawn one day and in the hospital the next. Burger said her husband spent 18 days in the intensive care unit at North Florida Regional Medical Center before he died April 30.

The infection originated in Burger's mouth, but doctors were not able to determine where he had picked up the bacteria, said Dorothy Burger.

____________________________________________
A knowledge base for NF

National Necrotizing Fasciitis Foundation (NNFF)

 

[jjenny]

That phrase in the last paragraph "....upgraded to good condition after doctors removed two pounds of flesh from his groin" seems sort of oxymoronic - kind of cold comfort!

At least he got to keep his arms and legs.

 

[oh_gal]

That phrase in the last paragraph "....upgraded to good condition after doctors removed two pounds of flesh from his groin" seems sort of oxymoronic - kind of cold comfort!

On the bright side, perhaps he had a very chubby groin era to begin with, so this was like a tummy tuck...or groin tuck, in the bargain, to getting well.

 

[amandab]

The infection originated in Burger's mouth, but doctors were not able to determine where he had picked up the bacteria, said Dorothy Burger.

It originated In. His. Mouth.

OMG

This would make me a hermit.

 

[amandab]

On the bright side, perhaps he had a very chubby groin era to begin with, so this was like a tummy tuck...or groin tuck, in the bargain.

If that's how this is going to work, then I volunteer my butt.

 

[Sonya610]

The 4th case happened a few miles from me so of course everyone here is talking about it. The bacteria can take several forms, some lives in water, the bacteria that infected the mother with new borns was strep, and of course MRSA found in hospitals is another form. The bacteria doesn't actually eat the flesh, but the toxins released by the bacteria cause the flesh to die. There have even been cases of people getting it from cleaning aquariums in their house.

It really does seem to have a lot to do with the victim's immune system, I heard a local doctor said the 25 year old woman had Lupis, but the news media isn't reporting that.

 

[Lera213]

I'm scared cause right now if I get a little cut, bruise it takes a longer time to heal then most. Seeing a doctor about an adrenal tumor (benign) in a few days.

 

[QueenD]

I am getting ready to walk to my car this morning to go to work. We have had lot of rain from Beryl. I have an area in my walk that sometimes holds water and I have on sandals. I was too freaked to walk through it. Although my feet really did not get in the water, I have disinfecting wipes in my car and I wipe both feet off when I got in.

All I could think of was this thread.

 

[BuzzieCat]

If that's how this is going to work, then I volunteer my butt.

http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/18627444/hixson-teen-battles-flesh-eating-bacteria

From the article: "The infected area was on her buttocks, which actually turned out to be the reason she avoided amputation. It's the area on the body with the most fatty tissue."

:blushing:

Still scary, though. Wow. The man who had it in his mouth and they can't figure out how it got there...scary. I would feel a *little* better if they seemed to understand more about how it works. The best we can do is wash our hands often and wash + keep an eye on any cuts.