/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/eluniverso/PQCUGEYUR5H2JLAXOC33E22J5Y.jpg "‘You’re smart and we’ll get out of this’: Shocking story of Matthias, 14, who lost both legs and hands to bacteria | International | News")
Mathias’s fever and redness in several parts of his body alarmed his parents, who ran to take him to hospital. While at the medical center, his health deteriorated.
El Universal noted that at the clinic “he suffered cardiopulmonary arrest. “The heart stopped beating for several minutes, but doctors managed to stabilize it. “
Matías was born in Colombia and is now 14 years old. He has lived in the United States with his family for ten years.
The boy, who loved sports and music, began to deteriorate at the end of June last year.
According to Semana, he has been “in intensive care for 60 days.”
El Tiempo explained that he and his family were on vacation in Florida in June. A few days later, the shocking story began.
Matthias lost both his hands and both legs to the bacteria.
‘He was lucky to get to hospital’: Pet sitter nearly died after being bitten by fleas, losing both hands and part of her feet
Toxic shock caused by bacteria
El Tiempo quoted the mother as saying that when Matias had an emergency, “They told us he had pneumonia, and then they told us they had to urgently transfer him by helicopter to another hospital because they needed more Professional equipment”.
When he went into cardiopulmonary arrest, doctors struggled to revive him for seven minutes.
Catalina Gutiérrez “went into a Nashville hospital and was told her son had multiple organ failure and would have to be put on ECMO to save his life.”
An aunt, Ana María, told Semana what happened: “He was involved in Ecmo treatment, mechanical ventilation and dialysis. “All these devices succeeded in saving his life when the prognosis was extremely conservative. “
Heart failure took its toll: “His limbs didn’t get enough blood circulation for long periods of time.”
On June 30, Catarina noted that doctors said Matias “suffered from toxic shock syndrome, which is caused by Group A Streptococcus. “This bacteria enters the bloodstream and causes this condition.”
This rarely happens, but it does happen
Catalina Gutierrez, Matias’ mother
During the holidays, Mathias would go to the beach and the lake with his brother.
At least six children in UK die from Streptococcus A
How did you get the bacteria? This is the question of the family.
It is not clear how streptococcus A entered her body, Semana published the article, which included some words from the aunt: “Apparently, the ‘bacteria’ invaded her lungs and then entered her heart, There was ‘toxic shock'” … as American doctors would say. “
This bacteria is known to live in many places, mainly in water.
Week
amputation
Since his limbs did not receive the necessary blood supply, in an emergency the only option was amputation, the Globe reported.
The decision was painful, but it was made to save Matthias’ life.
El Tiempo reported: “After the 14th, they told us that the right leg was damaged and had to be amputated (…) After the operation, we were hopeful, but within a week the doctors told us that we had lost feeling in the left leg.” There was damage too, like the hand,” the woman said.
They did not withhold information from Matthias. His parents and a psychologist supported him.
How do you tell your 14-year-old son that he’s going to lose all his limbs?
Catalina Gutierrez, Matias’ mother
When told about the first amputation, of his right leg, Gutierrez said he responded: “Okay, mom, everything is fine,” El Tiempo published.
Eight days later, he received another piece of bad news: Doctors were about to amputate his left leg and both hands.
His mother supported him with strength and told him a great truth: “Your family is with you.”
You will have the best, you will have the best prosthetics, you will have hand prostheses, you will run again, you will walk again, you will stand up, you will be an independent person…
mathias mother
The young man burst into tears. According to The Age, the mother left him and she heard his reaction: “Why would this happen to me? If I’m a good kid and I’ve never hurt anyone… it’s not fair, One day I was on a wonderful vacation with my family and then this happened, why? Mom”.
Katarina replied: “You are a very smart child and we will get out of this (…)”.
Two months later, the Mathias family still has hope. The Weekly quoted Aunt Anna Maria as saying that one of her nephew’s dreams was to study engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The treatments and promised prosthetics will come with additional costs. “The family is launching a campaign to raise funds and knowledge for Matias’ recovery,” from Medellin, Antioquia.
They won’t give up. Neither he nor his family. Catarina described her son as a high-spirited child, with The Times reporting: “Matthias is a gifted child. In fact, he has been part of a gifted children’s program since fifth grade,” The Times reported. the parents recalled.
She is proud of her son and stresses that “Matthias is special. Before the amputation began, he asked us how much the prosthesis would cost and said it was expensive. Even in his situation, he was thinking of us.”
This boy’s story touched people’s hearts. Semana published the touching sentiments of the singer J Balvin: “Matías, (…) the atmosphere is great. You are an example of life. Much strength, God bless you, much light. A hug, always. Go forward, warrior.” (Yo)