Mum whose son almost died of toxic shock warns of dangers
Abigail Morra, 35, of Farncombe Road, Worthing, said parents need to follow their instincts after her son Rowan Haining, 11, was initially diagnosed with a stomach bug.
She said: “Someone was definitely looking down on him because he shouldn’t be here right now. I have a whole new appreciation for him; all those silly little things that annoy you aren’t important any more.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“It has left me traumatised but making people aware of the dangers makes me feel a bit better. People need to follow their gut instincts because if I hadn’t Rowan wouldn’t have made it.”
The pair were on holiday in the New Forest on August 23 when Rowan became unwell.
He was suffering from sickness and diarrhoea, breathlessness, a raised temperature of 39.3 degrees Celsius and a pain in his hip.
They came home early and were told by doctors that Rowan had gastroenteritis – but Abigail, a nurse of 11 years, felt something was still not right.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“He was too ill for a tummy bug; he was confused, dizzy and really sick. He kept trying to lay on the floor to sleep so he could be cold. One time he got onto the bathroom floor and laid there face down.
“I thought ‘that’s it’ and I carried him down the stairs – he is the same size as me – and took him to A and E.”
It was at Worthing Hospital that he was finally diagnosed with toxic shock syndrome. It had been caused by a bacterial infection in his hip that was releasing poisonous toxins into his bloodstream and attacking his major organs, including his lungs, heart and kidneys.
He was put to sleep and driven by ambulance to Southampton General Hospital, which Abigail said was ‘a blur’.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“I couldn’t really believe it was happening. I was distraught, in sheer panic. We set off at 5 or 6pm and it took an hour to get us from Worthing to Southampton in rush hour traffic. I could feel us going really fast but the whole journey was a blur.”
Rowan was hooked up to an internal ventilation machine for two weeks in the children’s intensive care unit while he was stabilised.
Abigail said that when Rowan woke up on September 6, he had double vision and his left eye was half closed and flickering.
A series of head scans revealed that Rowan had a bleed on the back of his brain and several blood clots caused by the poisoning.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAfter seeing a neurologist, Rowan was released from hospital and is now back at home. He is visited by a nurse every day who gives him antibiotics through a catheter from his upper arm to his heart, but this means he has not been able to start his first year at Chatsmore Catholic High School.
Rowan said he was feeling better, adding: “I was told I had more chance of winning the Euromillions than getting toxic shock.”
Abigail said that the family are all still dealing with the emotional impact of the ordeal.
“I don’t feel the same as I did before, and Rowan is a lot more upset than usual. He is usually quite chatty but he has been very quiet.
“An 11-year-old shouldn’t be questioning their mortality.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdAccording to Southampton Hospital, the symptoms that people should look out for with blood poisoning are flu-like symptoms, sleepy, irritable or confused behaviour, fast breathing and heartbeat, high or very low temperature, passing urine less often and mottled or discoloured skin.
If two or more of these symptoms match then it is important to seek medical help fast.
For more information, visit sepsistrust.org.
Don’t miss out on all the latest breaking news where you live.
Here are four ways you can be sure you’ll be amongst the first to know what’s going on.
1) Make our website your homepage
2) Like our Facebook page
3) Follow us on Twitter
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad4) Register with us by clicking on ‘sign in’ (top right corner). You can then receive our daily newsletter AND add your point of view to stories that you read here.
And do share with your family and friends - so they don’t miss out!
Always the first with your local news.
Be part of it.