A Texas mother contracted West Nile virus after smoking a cigarette near mosquito-infested bushes near her home.
Carmen Patin, of Henrietta, recounted the horrific ordeal in an interview with Wichita Falls’ KFDX-TV – in which she describes how she is now learning to walk again because of the dreaded disease.
The 53-year-old woman, who was in a wheelchair, recalled going outside to smoke a cigarette when her legs suddenly gave out. Her husband picked her up and drove her in a panic to a nearby hospital.
She said she had no recollection of being taken there, and for the next eight days her memory was blank.
She spent a total of 12 days in hospital after being wrongly diagnosed with meningitis before eventually understanding it was a fever-causing virus mainly transmitted by mosquitoes, she told the radio station.
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Carmen Patin, a 53-year-old woman from Henrietta, Texas, recounted her horrific ordeal in an interview with KFDX-TV on Friday.
She contracted the dreaded virus, often transmitted by mosquitoes, after a smoke break outside her home. The disease temporarily left her unable to use her legs
‘When they started giving me steroids because they thought it was meningitis, it started attacking my nervous system.
“That’s when they found out it wasn’t meningitis, it was something else,” Patin said Friday, referring to the several CT scans and MRI scans he had undergone.
“They then did a spinal tap and the spinal tap showed it was West Nile virus and not meningitis,” she added.
After medical professionals confirmed the diagnosis, a long road to recovery began.
“I was literally paralyzed,” Patin said, as she slowly regained use of her legs.
‘I could barely move, I couldn’t think, I couldn’t talk.
“I mean, I was absolutely devastated,” she continued, as the station filmed some of the grueling physical therapy sessions she now endures.
“My legs were completely disabled,” she recalls.
“My legs were completely disabled,” she recalled, remembering that it was a simple smoke break that triggered her ongoing ailment
Doctors first diagnosed her with meningitis, before eventually realizing it was the dreaded virus that originally came from Africa and was causing her paralysis
Patin – who is also a grandmother – is now learning to walk again, and undergoes daily physical therapy to regain full use of her legs. At the time of writing, she can stand, but not much else.
There are indications that the virus, which originated in Africa, can cause polio-like paralysis. Patin appears to be one of those rare cases.
“I need help going to the bathroom,” she continued of her plight, which began with her routine cigarette smoking outdoors.
“I need help getting dressed. I need help getting in and out of bed,” she recalls, still confined to a wheelchair.
‘I had a big garden in my backyard; we have an above ground pool and things like that.
“I have seven grandchildren, you know, and I can’t do all that anymore.”
Now that Patin is able to stand again, his recovery is far from over, according to officials at Encompass Health Rehab Hospital.
There, the once active mother is doing her best to brave the constant stream of therapy sessions and regain her full freedom of movement. The thought of soon enjoying the outdoors with her family is her greatest motivation.
She also said she was surprised to have been infected with such a rare disease just steps from her front door, with the Lone Star State leading the U.S. in cases by 2024.
Patin’s road to recovery is far from over, according to staff at Encompass Health Rehab Hospital — as she continues to receive treatment
“I could barely move; I couldn’t think, I couldn’t talk. I mean, I was completely out of it,” she recalled, describing how she lost her memory for eight days after being infected
The virus is most commonly transmitted through bites from infected mosquitoes — an unfortunate reality of life in the Lone Star State as the summer months draw to a close.
At the time of writing, her rehabilitation at Encompass continues – prompting her to re-emphasize the importance of wearing protection outdoors. Her smoking habit, however, has remained in full swing
In addition, virus activity typically occurs in the summer months and fall, the CDS warns, with Texas already seeing 18 other incidents like Patin’s this year.
“I thought it was a little virus you catch,” the Texan recalled, going on to list some of the virus’s most common symptoms.
“You get a little sick or have flu-like symptoms, but you know what, you’ll be fine,” she said.
“But that wasn’t the case with me.”
As I write this, her rehabilitation at Encompass continues – which again makes her stress the importance of wearing protection outside. She hasn’t stopped smoking, however, with footage from the local news report showing her enjoying a perhaps well-earned cigar.
According to the CDC, there have been 103 cases of West Nile virus so far this year.
After Texas, Nebraska has the most cases with 13, followed by Nevada with 11.
Statistics show that there are a total of 23 other cases.
As Patin noted, experts warn against dealing with mosquitoes in your outdoor space if you don’t keep your arms and legs covered.