A Westbury man is currently recovering in hospital after he contracted a rare flesh-eating disease that left him fighting for his life.
Steve Allan woke up on the morning of Tuesday 28th March with a swollen and painful knee and he initially didn’t think too much about it. He went off to work as usual, but came home halfway through the day as the pain got worse. Two days later, Steve found himself at the Bath RUH, where doctors diagnosed him with Strep A necrotizing fasciitis, a rare disease, which affects around 500 people in the UK each year.
Steve had 20% of his leg taken away in surgery, and following his body entering into toxic shock syndrome, he was put into an induced coma so his body could recuperate. He has since come out of the coma and is currently recovering in the intensive care unit (ICU).
Steve’s partner Cheri-Ann says that his condition quickly got worse and that he was lucky to be seen when he did. “When Steve came back from work on the first day, he gradually kept feeling worse, so I dialled 111 and they advised that I take him to hospital,” said Cheri-Ann. “We actually were too late when we arrived in Frome as the hospital had closed, so we went back home and decided to go again the next day.
“The next day he couldn’t walk – his condition had progressed significantly and the swelling had spread considerably and a purple rash covered his entire leg which was clearly sepsis. What shocked me is that the rash appeared in the time it took to travel to Frome. The staff at Frome Hospital were quick to offer him pain relief and fluids while they waited for an ambulance to take him to RUH Bath.
“When we got there, he was swarmed by doctors who rushed him into surgery. Steve’s body unfortunately experienced toxic shock syndrome and his organs started to fail, so he was put into an induced coma and put onto dialysis and a breathing ventilator, in order to help his recovery and to aid the pain.
“He was brought out of the coma on day six and he is currently still in the ICU and on dialysis. In total, he’s had about 20% of his leg taken out from the groin to the ankle that includes flesh, muscles and nerves. The wound is being vacuum packed every three days so the doctors can look out for any more infection. He was lucky to not have his leg amputated.”
Once the wound starts to heal, Steve will be transferred to a hospital in either Bristol or Salisbury for plastic surgery.
Cheri-Ann added, “We were actually told to prepare for the worst in the first couple of days, especially when he went into the coma. He seems to be doing better now, which is such a relief, but he is still up and down and his body can still quickly turn on him.
“The doctors are saying he is really lucky as they managed to get to him quickly. The infection spreads so quick – if it went ignored, we could be looking at a different situation altogether. We have three kids, so I’ve been really fortunate that family members can look after them during the school holidays so I can visit Steve every day and be by his side.”
Although rare, necrotizing fasciitis can occur when a wound becomes infected. Cheri-Ann says that they are unsure how Steve contracted the disease, but added that he may have developed an infection due to eczema on his leg. Doctors had asked if he had been out running recently as he is a keen runner, but he had not been running for a month before this happened.
Appeal for donations
A fundraising appeal has been set up by Steve’s friend, Tracey Hyde, who is asking for donations for the family to enable Cheri-Ann, who does not drive, to visit him in hospital while he recovers.
On the post, Tracey says, “Unfortunately Steve’s insurance does not cover for situations like this. Please can you help as Steve is looking at a long recovery ahead.”
Cheri-Ann added, “I’m struggling at the moment as we have three children to think about while all this is going on; I also don’t drive, so money raised will help me go and visit Steve. I also don’t really know what support and help is out there as there is very little info out there.
“We both work at Lidl – I’ve had to reduce my hours and use up any holiday and Steve is on statutory sick pay, so we may struggle over the coming weeks. I was blown away by the response to the GoFundMe page, people have been really generous.”
If you would like to donate to the cause visit https://bit.ly/3omer6t or type in ‘Please help Steve, Cheri-Ann, and family’ on the GoFundMe page.
Pictured: Cheri-Ann and Steve.
Pictured: Steve at Bath RUH.
Pictured: Steve at a local running event.
