The Perils of a Routine Shave: Dana Sedgewick's Brush with Necrotizing Fasciitis

While some people use shaving creams, some prefer the old fashion blade and others shaving stick but people who like to have their groins and armpit shaved will use one of these methods, and that was what Dana Sedgewick did that went completely wrong.

She was shaving her bikini line like she did regularly as part of her self-care routine and in the process of shaving, she felt odd as she noticed a little pimple on her groin that kept bleeding. She didn't take it as any big deal since she has been shaving for a while and would have pimples one time or the other so se brushed it off as normal but she felt sick. She overlooked the pimple but that pimple was going to be the reason why she would spend 9 days of her life in a hospital at a comatose state and risk the amputation of her legs.

After the shave, she went on without her daily activity but as days passed, she felt more nauseated and dizzier and decided to visit the hospital. The doctor decided to take a swab of the rash and it is surprising how they didn't see anything of the extraordinary because she was just prescribed a course of antibiotics with the believe that it was just a skin infection but as she kept using the antibiotics, the rash continued to spread, becoming bloody and irritating.

Soon the hospital called with the test result to inform her that the infection was more than what they thought. By the time she got to the hospital, her legs were already black and she immediately collapsed. She was rushed to the trauma unit and was diagnosed with Necrotizing fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria).

She was wheeled into the operating room where surgery was done to remove the dead skin on her legs to replace it with skin from her back and if this was not successful, it would lead to the amputation of her legs which is the only way to prevent the bacteria from killing her. In the process of trying to save her, she developed sepsis as her immune response began to attack itself putting her into septic shock.

It was at this point that her kidneys failed, her heart stopped, and she was given a 30% chance of survival and in other for her to survive, she had to be put in an induced coma. This induced coma lasted for 9 days and when she woke up, she didn't know what was going on until the doctor reminded her of her shaving experience. Her leg muscles were rotten with little skin around her groins but you see, that surgery wasn't going to be her last. In other to repair the damage caused by the infection, she has undergone a minimum of 26 surgeries.

Necrotizing fasciitis (NSTI) is a certain type of soft skin tissue infection and according to the name it has to do with the death of the soft tissues around the skin and organs, caused by bacteria usually Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, and polyicrobial infection. When these bacteria come in contact with open wound, they can lead to serious problems.

Staphylococcus and Streptococcus can be passed from one person to another but through direct contact including touching an open wound. It is very unlikely for people to have Necrotizing fasciitis unless if they have a compromised immune system or in very rare cases. In the United Sates, there are 4 people per 1 million who would get Necrotizing fasciitis yearly.

It is difficult to diagnose Necrotizing fasciitis because differentiating non-necrotizing infection from necrotizing infection and unlike the believe that only people who are immunocompromise come down with flesh eating bacteria, it can affect anyone even people who are healthy. Also, almost half of the cases of Necrotizing fasciitis do not have any inciting incident so finding the root cause can also be a little difficult.

Dana's harrowing journey serves as a sobering reminder of the unpredictable nature of infections like necrotizing fasciitis and the importance of prompt medical attention in the face of seemingly minor symptoms. As she continues her recovery, her resilience stands as a testament to the fragility of life and the indomitable spirit of survival in the face of adversity.

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^{Post Reference}

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^{https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/reports/a9569160
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/woman-almost-loses-leg-cutting-shaving/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430756/
https://www.mottchildren.org/health-library/hw140405
https://www.cdc.gov/groupastrep/diseases-public/necrotizing-fasciitis.html
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/necrotising-fasciitis/
https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/necrotizing-fasciitis/}

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^{Image Reference}

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^{Image 1 || Wikimedia Commons || Beginning of Necrotizing Fasciitis
Image 2 || Wikimedia Commons || OSC Microbio 21 02 necrosis}