A new mother in the United Kingdom nearly lost her life due to a deadly rash caused by a rare flesh-eating bacteria known as necrotizing fasciitis. The 27-year-old woman, Charleigh Chatterton, shared her horrific experience with the condition, which can spread quickly and destroy tissues in the skin, muscles, and subcutaneous tissue (the tissue beneath the skin).
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), necrotizing fasciitis typically enters the body through a break in the skin, such as a cut, insect bite, puncture wound, surgical wound, or burn. Early symptoms include warm, red areas of the skin, swollen red areas, severe pain, and fever. As the infection progresses, blisters or black spots may appear, the skin may change color, pus may form, and the patient may experience fatigue, nausea, and pain in the affected area.
To prevent necrotizing fasciitis, it is advised to wash your hands regularly, maintain good hygiene, and keep wounds clean and bandaged. When a break in the skin occurs, it is important to clean the area and care for it properly. Treatment for the condition requires prompt action, and medical professionals may provide antibiotics or perform surgery to remove dead cells and tissues.
Chatterton’s story is a cautionary tale of why and how one must take care of wounds. After giving birth, she was rushed back to the hospital six days later with a rash as hot as a boiled kettle and flu-like symptoms. Doctors diagnosed her with necrotizing fasciitis and warned her family she might not survive. Chatterton was highly sedated for three days, and doctors successfully removed the dead tissues through surgery.
While necrotizing fasciitis is not a condition that doctors come across every day, there have been significant numbers of cases worldwide that prove that it is a deadly bacteria that must be identified early to take prompt action. People should take necessary precautions to avoid infection and take good care of wounds to prevent it from occurring.
