A mother of four in the UK was put into an induced coma and had to amputate her hands after suffering sepsis due to a bite from the family dog, according to reports.
Michelle Ellis of Plymouth suffered a minor injury when her dog bit her when she put him in the cage, the Plymouth Herald reported.
After her flu-like symptoms worsened, Ellis was admitted to Derriford Hospital, where she was diagnosed with a potentially fatal condition that occurs when the response to the body’s infection damages tissues.
She was then placed in an induced coma and placed on dialysis, according to the agency.
“Her kidneys are still not working and the extent of the damage caused is uncertain at this point,” Ellis’s sister Melanie told The Sun reported.
“She still doesn’t know the situation with her hands. They are waiting to see if she is strong enough to absorb this, ”she said, adding that her sister suffered damage to multiple organs.
Melanie said it will cost £ 32,000 – about $ 44,000 – for each hand to be replaced with a prosthesis that will have to be renewed every five years.
Ellis’s daughter, Keana, 24, said the dog’s bite was “the size of a cigarette burn, so nothing was thought of and she left it – and then it happened.”
The woman’s Facebook page shows her with two dogs, including a pug named Mabel, but it was unclear which one bit her. The dog that bit her would be euthanized after the tragic incident.
The family is conducting a fundraiser to help raise money for Ellis’ treatment.
“The fundraiser is to help pay for her rehabilitation and any costs that will come with it, but also just so she can have a little treat when she starts to get better,” Keana told the Plymouth Herald.
“Hopefully it will be a good gift for her, and it will mean that she will have no extra worries. Fortunately, she won’t have to worry about money for a while, ”she added.
Meanwhile, the family was unable to visit Ellis, who came out of a coma in the past few days because of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We are not allowed to visit it at the moment, which is making it much more difficult. The most difficult thing is that we were not expecting this, ”said Keana.
“Now I am determined to raise as much money as we can with fundraising and raise awareness, so that she has a good quality of life when she gets better.”