MUM’S MENINGITIS SCARE
A Sligo mum is urging parents to be aware of the symptoms of meningitis or septicaemia and to trust their instincts and act fast if they suspect their child may be seriously ill.
Jacintha McGowan (51) told The Sligo Champion how her son Koray became ill in February 2015 at the age of 18.
“He came home from school with what seemed like a cold and a headache. I gave him paracetamol and told him to sleep for awhile.
“When I checked on him after an hour he had developed a temperature and didn’t want the curtains open as light hurt his eyes. At 8pm he started vomiting and his whole body was boiling except his hands and feet which were freezing.
“A friend and I rushed him to hospital and Koray could barely walk with pains everywhere. The hospital staff said that we’d be waiting a while but we could see he was deteriorating g in seconds, so I kept pleading with the nurse to get someone to look at him.
“Eventually, they did the normal checks and said it could be a virus. But as we were waiting for the results his breathing became shallow and pinhead red spots started to appear on his arm and stomach, so I immediately thought, meningitis.
“I called a nurse to look and when she saw this she just ran and four doctors came back and it was mayhem from there. Luckily, they started treatment with intravenous antibiotics on the assumption it was meningitis.
“That fast reaction saved Koray’s life. The results later came back and confirmed that he had contracted meningococcal C meningitis. The doctor said if I had brought him in 30 minutes later or had left him to sleep through the night he could have died.
“Koray suffered with slight nerve damage in his eyes which repaired itself and his memo- r ry monthso was terrible but three for a years few on he is grand.
“If sharing our story rraises awareness of this terrible illness and saves even one life I’d be grateful because we didn’t know enough about it. It was the scariest time of our lives. It shows how rapid treatment is crucial in this illness.”
Meningitis Awareness Week (17-23 September 2018) is run by Meningitis Research Foundation (MRF). The charity has launched a new report showing that lives could be saved if parents are given consistent, explicit advice about recognising meningitis and septicaemia (otherwise known as sepsis) from health professionals.
Most children with meningococcal meningitis or septicaemia display only non-specific symptoms in the first 4-6 hours of illness. The first symptoms are usually fever, vomiting, headache and feeling unwell. Limb pain, pale skin and cold hands and feet often appear earlier than the more well-known symptoms of rash, neck stiffness, dislike of bright lights and confusion.
Other symptoms in babies can ym be: Unusual grunting sounds; Tense or bulging soft spot on their head; refusing to feed; irritable when picked up, with a high pitched or moaning cry; a stiff body with jerky movements, or else floppy and lifeless; Fever (Note: this is often absent in babies less than three months of age).
MRF’s new safety netting resources hub is available at: www.meningitis.org/TrustYourInstincts