A DEVASTATED mum has told of her heartbreak after losing her teenage daughter to meningitis and septicaemia.
13-year-old Maisie Dicks, from Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, died on New Year’s Day – just days after telling mum Sharon Stokes that was feeling poorly.
Sharon, 38, said that she thought Maise had just caught a bug.
“If she had had a temperature or breathing difficulties, I might have thought differently,” she said.
“By the time I knew, it was too late.”
She called an ambulance on 30 December after Maisie work up with “grey eyes” and a rash.
Sharon said: “Her arms went black within an hour. It was so rapid, it was unbelievable.
“She had meningitis but it was septicaemia at that point. By the time I knew, it was too late. I couldn’t have done anything else.”
Maisie was immediately put into a medically-induced coma to try to contain the infection, but died just two days later.
“I honestly did not believe it would go this way. I thought she was very sick but not that she would die,” Sharon said.
What is septicaemia?
Sepsis and septicaemia both refer to a blood infection that’s typically caused by bacteria.
Even though the definitions are closely related, there are some small differences.
Sepsis occurs when your body reacts to a severe infection, whereas septicaemia is the name of the infection itself.
The NHS explains: “Sepsis can affect multiple organs or the entire body, even without blood poisoning or septicaemia.
“Sepsis can also be caused by viral or fungal infections, although bacterial infections are by far the most common cause.”
Symptoms can include:
- weakness
- loss of appetite
- fever and chills
- thirst
- difficult or rapid breathing
- rapid heart rate
- low blood pressure
- low urine output
“I’m numb. It still hasn’t hit me. Everything she had for Christmas is still in the house.
“She was such a loving, caring person and so grateful.
“Even when we were in hospital, she was thanking me for looking after her and telling me she appreciated it.”
Sharon says that Maisie, who dreamt of joining the army in the future, was a “really happy child”.
Symptoms of meningitis
A classic symptom of the disease is a blotchy rash that doesn’t disappear when a glass is rolled over it. But that doesn’t always appear in every case.
Other symptoms can include:
- a high temperature of 38C +
- feeling and being sick
- irritability and a lack of energy
- a headache
- aching muscles and joints
- breathing quickly
- cold hands and feet
- pale, mottled skin
- a stiff neck
- confusion
- a dislike of bright lights
- drowsiness
- fits (seizures)
Babies may also:
- refuse feeds
- be agitated and not want to be picked up
- have a bulging soft spot on their head (fontanelle)
- be floppy or unresponsive
- have an unusual high-pitched cry
- have a stiff body
These can develop in any order.
“She would do anything for anybody and wanted to help everybody.”
Sharon is now sharing her story in a bid to raise awareness of both diseases – especially septicaemia.
Bacterial meningitis is incredibly serious, with one in ten cases being fatal.
MORE ON MENINGITIS
Even if victims do survive, some can be left with long-term problems including hearing or vision loss, memory issues, epilepsy and amputation of limbs.
“That’s what kills you,” Sharon explained.
“I don’t want another family to go through this.”
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