ALICE, 8, DIED FROM RARE FORM OF SEPSIS Doctors must spot the signs
IT is every parent’s worst nightmare.
Just hours after eight-year-old Alice Giles was discharged by medics with flu-like symptoms – she died.
Mum Anne Giles took her daughter to an urgent care doctor after the schoolgirl, who’d been suffering cold and flu symptoms for a few days, complained of a cough, sickness, high temperature and back pain.
She was discharged diagnosis of viral flu. But the next day, Alice died. Anne, of Chapel Park, Newcastle, said: “I always thought Alice would grow up to change the world. That hasn’t happened but I hope that, by raising awareness, she’ll still be able to change things from heaven.”
Anne decided to seek medical help after finding her daughter with a blue tinge to her face and lips, complaining of numbness in her feet and fingers. She called for a GP, but quickly rang an ambulance as Alice seemed to get worse. The terrified mum faced an agonising wait as her call failed part way through and she had to ring back and explain Alice’s symptoms again before paramedics could be sent.
Alice, who was fit and healthy, had been suffering from sepsis, a fatal complication which arose Under fives: Go straight to A&E or call 999 if your child... Looks mottled, bluish or pale Is very lethargic or difficulttowake Feels abnormally cold to touch Is breathing very fast with a from the H1N1 ‘swine flu’ bacteria lurking in the back of her throat.
During an inquest into the schoolgirl’s death, Newcastle corner’s court heard how the deadly infection had travelled from her throat into the cavity behind her lungs and killed off cells there – a very rare condition called descending necrotizing mediastinitis.
Apart from a pain in her back, Alice’s symptoms closely mirrored those of a viral flu, an unpleasant but not fatal illness which was common at that time of year.
The out-of-hours GP who examined her, at a surgery based in Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) but run by Northern Doctors Urgent Care (NDUC),
believed she was suffering from this flu, and sent her home.
By the time paramedics arrived, around 20 minutes after her mother’s call, it was too late. It is likely she died before she reached emergency doctors at the RVI.
The inquest heard that the only chance to save her could have been a potentially risky emergency operation to remove the dead cells and administer antibiotics directly to the site of the infection, at an earlier point.
Coroner Karen Has a fit orconvulsion
Older children and adults: Early symptoms of sepsis (seek medical advice urgently from 111): A high temperature (fever) or low body temperature Chills and shivering Dilks “There was no missed opportunity to diagnose and treat Alice that would have affected the tragic outcome in this case, and given that is the evidence, it seems to me that the appropriate conclusion is the short form conclusion of natural causes.”
While the specific form of sepsis from which Alice suffered was extremely rare, the potentially fatal complication can be triggered by infections in other parts of the body.
Following the case, NDUC have introduced a new push to help clinicians spot the signs. New systems in Newcastle include an increased focus on parents’ worries about how ill their youngsters are.
Alice’s parents said they hoped her case would raise awareness of the signs of sepsis among medics and parents.
Mum Anne said: “It’s positive that doctors are trying to change things for the better, but people need to be aware of sepsis: it’s fast acting and can be as lethal as meningitis.” ANNE GILES said: A fast heartbeat Fast breathing
In some cases, symptoms of more severe sepsis develop soon after – go straight to A&E or call 999. These can include: Feeling dizzy or faint A change in mental state – such as confusion or disorientation Diarrhoea Nausea and vomiting Slurred speech Severe muscle pain Severe breathlessness Less urine production than normal – for example, not urinating for a day Cold, clammy and pale or mottled skin Loss of consciousness
Eight-year-old Alice Giles, who died from sepsis after contracting bird flu