‘He was suffering from an aggressive bacterial infection that made his kidneys fail and his blood began to clot’.
A student in the US lost both of his legs and part of his hand after developing sepsis caused by eating his friend’s leftover chicken-noodle takeaway.
Only identified as JC, the man became immediately ill after eating the leftover food, according to the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).
Doctors found that JC had no allergies, was relatively up to date on his vaccinations and was arguably in good health, despite the sudden onset of illness. The Journal added that JC rarely drank, smoked two packs of cigarettes a week and smoked cannabis daily.
On top of that, JC had not travelled recently or been exposed to animals or ill people.
The only serious ailments in his family were his dad’s coronary artery disease and his brother’s bout of meningitis when he was six.
Eventually, JC’s condition worsened and he was airlifted to another hospital for further treatment, the Daily Star reported.
The Journal explained: “The patient had been well until 20 hours before this admission when diffuse abdominal pain and nausea developed after he ate rice, chicken, and lo mein leftovers from a restaurant meal.”
NEJM explained that JC suffered from “abdominal pain and vomiting” followed by the “development of chills, generalized weakness, progressively worsening diffuse myalgias, chest pain, shortness of breath, headache, neck stiffness, and blurry vision.”
It added: “It was confirmed he was suffering from an aggressive bacterial infection that made his kidneys fail and his blood began to clot.”
After further testing, the bacteria were confirmed as Neisseria meningitidis, a form of fatal sepsis. It’s now believed that a missed booster jab of the meningococcal vaccine when he was 16 was the culprit, allowing the bacteria to infect him through his saliva.
JC’s tissue developed gangrene as a result, which resulted in parts of his fingers being amputated alongside his legs which were separated below the knee.
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