An Australian grandmother almost lost her leg after a morning swim when a bacterial infection from the beach entered her body through a scratched mosquito bite.
Celeste Stirrup, 52, went swimming with her granddaughter at Bulcock Beach on the Sunshine Coast last month.
A few days after swimming, she noticed an 8-inch lump on her thigh that became incredibly painful.
“I got a fever and started to feel unwell, so I grabbed a cold washing machine, turned on the air conditioning and went to bed early.” she told the Courier.
Celeste Stirrup, 52, went swimming with her granddaughter at Bulcock Beach on the Sunshine Coast last month with a scratch on her leg from a mosquito bite
A few days after swimming, she noticed an 8-inch lump on her thigh that became incredibly painful
Mrs. Stirrup woke up around 2 a.m. and couldn’t shake the fever.
‘Then the blisters started. It almost felt like a volcano erupting under my leg,” she said.
The first large blister burst and caused a large wound on her leg, and she rushed to Sunshine Coast University Hospital to have it dressed.
Ms Stirrup was all alone when the surgeon sent her for a CT scan and told her she would ‘run for an immediate amputation’ if they found a certain type of bacteria.
Ms Stirrup has warned Australians not to swim with open wounds
Fortunately, the infection-causing bacteria was identified as cellulitis, and soon after, medical staff assured her that amputation was not necessary.
She remained in hospital until February 6 and had surgery ten days later to remove the dead tissue. In a few weeks she will undergo a skin transplant.
A nurse told her this was the fourth case they had seen on the Sunshine Coast in the past two weeks.
Mrs Stirrup has not been able to work for five weeks and said she felt like she was living in a ‘crazy nightmare’.
‘This shouldn’t happen to anyone. If you have a bite or a cut, you should not go swimming.”