A 45 year old mother of three Donna Corden from Leeds report how she nearly lost her life after a cut on her eyebrow turned into a severe flesh-eating bacteria that fed through half of her face.
She slipped in the kitchen and hit her head on the cooker earlier this year, leaving a scar on her eyebrow.
She later developed a deadly bacteria infection called Necrotising fasciitis, she ended up in a coma for three and a half days fighting for her life.
Doctors took skin and muscle from Donna’s leg after a week to repair the damage to her face.
“It's still unbelievable to see that a small cut above my left eyebrow triggered something so horrific" Donna said.
“After I’d fallen, my doctor put a few butterfly stitches across my face. He was sure I’d be okay but he sent me to the hospital for an x-ray to be on the safe side. The results were all clear so I went home to relax".
The next day Donna began to feel dizzy and sick and her face started to swell up.
Donna recalled: “I was still convinced I was fine and had a tummy bug, but as the hours passed I’d never felt so sick.
“The doctors told me I had a very dangerous infection, but by this time I was drifting in and out of consciousness.
“The next thing I remember is coming round a week later in intensive care.”
Necrotising fasciitis can be caused by various types of bacteria, some of which can live on the skin without causing any problem.
In rare cases, the condition is triggered when bacteria seeps into the blood stream.
The infection is quick to spread through the body, causing kidney failure and heart to cease.
Donna also developed sepsis, a serious complication of the infection which causes multiple organ failure.
Donna said;“When I woke up I asked for a mirror and when I saw my reflection I broke down.
“I looked like a monster with a rugby ball stitched to the side of my face. I was in absolute bits.
“The skin around my left eye was black, and I had no sight on that side.
“I just wanted to hide myself away because I looked so awful.”
Four months on, Donna will need more reconstructive surgery and has been told it could be a year before her face starts to look normal again.
She admitted: “I’m still struggling to get my mind off everything that has happened.
“I’m only just building up the confidence to go out again.
“Doctors managed to save my eye but it’s going to be a while before I get my sight back completely.
“I’ll never look the same again, but I’m lucky to be alive, that’s what matters most.”
Donna and her family are raising money for intensive care beds and towards research for the maxillofacial team at the Leeds General Infirmary.
CREDIT: thesun.co.uk
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