Mother warns of Strep A danger after six-year-old daughter left unable to walk following infection
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A mother was warned about the dangers of strep A after her daughter was unable to walk due to severe inflammation.
Kadie Dolphin, 37, first noticed something was wrong on November 7 when her six-year-old daughter Nancie Rae complained of an itchy belly.
Nancie Rae spent 48 hours in hospital after doctors worried about how quickly her body was swelling and Ms Dolphin was terrified she would “go out without my daughter”.
Fortunately, her daughter recovered from the infection and was “back to her normal, crazy state of mind.”
Nancie Rae spent 48 hours in hospital after doctors worried about how quickly her body was swelling and her mother was terrified she would “go out without my daughter”.
Kadie Dolphin, 37, first noticed something was wrong on November 7 when her six-year-old daughter Nancie Rae complained of an itchy belly (Pictured: Kadie and daughters Nancie Rae and Edie)
The mother of five has now shared the harrowing experience to help other parents recognize the symptoms in their own children.
Ms Dolphin said doctors told her that early detection of the infection was the reason she got better so quickly.
She said: “To be honest, I was absolutely petrified – at the point where it started to get really bad, we didn’t know what it was and I felt like it took forever to figure out what was wrong.”
She continued: ‘The doctor said the swelling was coming out in front of his eyes, [Nancie Rae] it was swelling up right in front of us, the doctor said we were really worried and that’s when i thought oh god.
“The worrying thing is that I didn’t know what was happening, I looked at her and thought: ‘Am I going out without my daughter?
Ms Dolphin, a healthcare assistant from Warrington, Cheshire, first noticed something was wrong with Nancie Rae on the night of November 7.
Her daughter had come downstairs at 6:00 pm complaining of an itchy belly, and when she looked, she noticed that she had a small mark that looked like a mosquito bite on her tummy and knee.
Ms Dolphin said doctors told her early detection of the infection was the reason Nancie Rae got better so quickly.
Ms Dolphin, a healthcare assistant from Warrington, Cheshire, first noticed something was wrong with Nancie Rae on the evening of November 7 (Pictured: Kadie and her daughter Nancie Rae)
Assuming that her daughter had been playing and been bitten, she gave her an antihistamine and thought of nothing else.
However, Nancie Rae came downstairs the next morning at 6am with a high fever and a rash where the ‘bites’ had been.
Ms Dolphin said: “The next morning the rash was all over her belly, it was a weird flat rash and it was very hot to the touch.”
Ms Dolphin tried to get an appointment with the GP, but was told nothing would be available until 6:00 p.m. that day, and by 9:30 a.m., Nancie Rae’s hand had started to swell. .
Deciding not to wait, Ms Dolphin took her daughter to the Halton urgent care center and within five minutes of arriving, the couple had been placed in a room and attended to by a doctor.
Mrs. Dolphin’s daughter had come downstairs at 6 pm complaining of an itchy belly, and when she looked, she noticed that she had a small mark that looked like a mosquito bite on her tummy and knee.
Deciding not to wait, Ms Dolphin took her daughter to the Halton urgent care center and within five minutes of arriving, the couple were placed in a room and attended to by a doctor.
Although they initially thought it was an allergic reaction, Nancie Rae continued to swell in her hands, face and lymph nodes, so they decided to transfer her to Warrington Hospital.
Upon arrival, he was given amoxicillin antibiotics and swabbed from his throat and 11 vials of blood were taken for testing, at which time he was diagnosed with a strep A infection.
Ms Dolphin said: “She had lost the ability to walk, all her joints were swollen, she was completely red and she still had a high temperature – that’s when they took a throat swab for Strep A.”
“Throughout the night the medicine had no effect and they kept coming back saying she wasn’t getting better, she was a little awake but she was very limp and couldn’t hold on.”
“Amoxicillin is useless for strep A, so they switched from steroids to penicillin.”
They gave her penicillin through an intravenous drip, but due to the high concentration of the antibiotic, it left the young woman with a burning sensation in her arms.
Upon arrival, Nancie (pictured) received amoxicillin antibiotics and had throat swabs and 11 vials of blood taken for testing, at which point she was diagnosed with a strep A infection.
Although doctors initially believed it was an allergic reaction, Nancie Rae continued to swell in her hands, face and lymph nodes, so they decided to transfer her to Warrington Hospital.
Nancie Rae couldn’t walk or talk, and Ms Dolphin says she was “screaming” because she was in so much pain.
Doctors continued to monitor her condition as Ms Dolphin and her daughter remained in the hospital for two days.
Fortunately, after 48 hours, Nancie Rae’s condition began to improve as the swelling subsided, and she was sent home on antibiotics.
Although she was left with some lasting effects, including kidney damage and a secondary infection, she recovered at home.
Ms Dolphin said: “The care provided has been fantastic, I can’t fault the NHS at all, they were absolutely amazing and really focused.”
“For a six-year-old girl, she’s pretty small anyway and this infection has ravaged her body, but she’s back to her normal, crazy state of mind.
‘She is wild, she doesn’t give us a minute of peace. Once she has opened her eyes, she doesn’t shut up.
“All we hear is the children are passing away, but that’s not all, she’s home and she’s fine now, as horrible as it was, we need to build immunity.”