A 35-year-old Texas man had both hands and parts of his feet amputated after he contracted typhoid from a flea and nearly died of septic shock, gangrene and organ failure
A Texas man had both his hands and parts of his feet amputated after contracting typhus from a flea.
Michael Kohlhof of Houston was visiting his mother at the hospital in San Antonio when he fell ill on June 19 — with what his family suspected was the flu.
The 35-year-old was immediately rushed to the ICU and was suffering from sepsis and organ failure so severe his family was told he was likely to die.
But the handyman and pet sitter miraculously got through it, but remains in the hospital and several more surgeries are expected.
Michael Kohlhof is pictured in hospital, where he was admitted on June 19. He has multiple surgeries ahead of him and no health insurance
Kohlhof, handyman, pet sitter and artist, has lost his arms down to his forearm; his toes and parts of his feet
Michael Kohlhof, 35, of Houston, was bitten by a flea and contracted typhus
“He almost died once or twice,” said his brother, Greg Kohlhof. “They were afraid he might be brain dead.”
Kohlhof showed no abnormal symptoms in the weeks leading up to his diagnosis, although he felt tired.
Symptoms of typhoid fever include fever and chills, body aches and pains, loss of appetite and vomiting, according to the CDC.
“Untreated, typhoid can cause serious illness and damage to one or more organs, including the liver, kidneys, heart, lungs, and brain,” the CDC says.
told Greg KENS5 that Michael was lucky enough to visit his mother at the time. “Because his symptoms are so common, I don’t know if he would have gone to the doctor. He probably just tried to sleep it off.’
J’Lenne Hardaway, Kohlhof’s mother, said doctors told them that these types of fleas are only found in California and Texas.
They said he was “the victim of a severe and traumatic bite from a single flea – with unimaginable consequences,” she said on a GoFundMe page.
Her son had no health insurance and she is now raising money to help him. “If it had been 48 hours later, he wouldn’t have made it,” she said.
Greg said he was impressed with his brother’s resilience. “How he is now, I’m just amazed,” he said. He also said that his brother liked to be creative.
“Me and he talked about it. It’s not your hands doing all these great things. It’s your opinion,’ Greg told his brother.
“You’ll just have to find a new way to exercise it.” He said Michael hopes people learn from his experience.
“I think he also wants people to know these things exist,” Greg said. “There are fleas, there are diseases, but be careful, be aware, don’t be afraid to live your life.”
Alishpa Masood, Michael’s girlfriend, told KHO 11: “He has exceeded our expectations in terms of strength and courage. “He has a very positive outlook that we are all very proud of.”
Michael Kohlhof’s mother J’Lenne Hardaway and his brother Greg said they were lucky he survived
Flea-borne typhus has been rampant along the West Coast in recent years, with Lose Angeles and Long Beach hit hard in 2018.
Officials recorded 12 cases of the bug in Long Beach, home to 470,000 people and about 20 miles south of downtown LA.
Many of the cases were among the homeless and it was feared that the disease was spread by rats and feral cats.
Another 20 cases were recorded in Pasadena — and a total of 59 across LA County.
Pasadena and Long Beach are both technically in LA County, but they have their own health departments that record their own numbers.
Flea-borne typhus occurs when feces from an infected insect comes in contact with a person’s cut or rubbed into the eyes.
These fleas often live on feral cats and rats that are attracted to areas of street litter.
The 2018 outbreak of flea-borne typhoid in LA County was unusually severe. Only 67 cases were registered in all of 2017.
Flea-borne typhus occurs when feces from an infected insect comes in contact with a person’s cut or rubbed into the eyes. The insects often live on feral cats and rats (file photo)
Pasadena and Long Beach average five or six a year. Officials could not explain why typhus hit the three cities so hard.
Symptoms of typhoid fever in humans include fever, chills, headache, rash, and muscle aches.
In rare cases, the infection can cause liver failure or be fatal – an estimated two to four percent of untreated patients die.
Typhoid affects about 200 people in the US each year, according to the California Department of Public Health (CDPH).
Health officials were made aware of the outbreak when a cluster of nine cases occurred in central LA between July and August.
The infection is endemic — commonly found — in parts of LA and Orange County, Southern California.
Fleas that carry the infection can live on cats, rats or opossums, but the animals themselves have no symptoms.
Typhus often spreads in areas where there is an accumulation of detritus that attracts wildlife.
The infection cannot be passed from person to person and is treatable with antibiotics. There is no vaccine in the US.
Up to four percent of people worldwide who go untreated die, the CDPH claims.
To prevent infection, the LA public health department recommends that residents use flea control on pets, tuck their pants into their socks or boots when outside, and avoid feral or stray animals.
Texas has also previously experienced a flea-borne typhus outbreak.