ADS
Sam Owen caught deadly Weil's disease after kayaking in dirty river water
A kayaker is lucky to be alive after contracting a potentially fatal disease from dirty river water.
Sam Owen, 24, believes the bacteria from rat urine entered his body through his eyes and nose, as well as grazes on his hands from rock climbing.
He was rushed to hospital after he began vomiting and suffering excruciating back ache before being diagnosed with Weil's disease, which attacks the organs and can be fatal.
Mr Owen, of Petersfield, Hampshire, said: 'I read there was two weeks from when you contract it to going pass the point of surviving. I was 17 days so I shouldn't have survived.
'I am extremely lucky and grateful to be alive.'
Mr Owen was on an outdoor instructor course and spent the weekend in Wales rock climbing.
'I came back and was kayaking in the Itchen River, in Southampton. It was the first time I have ever kayaked.
'I was learning to capsize with a girl who didn't quite have the strength to turn me over, so I was capsizing a lot more than others in my group.
'I found out that Weil's disease could get in through your eyes, nose and through the scrapes on skin, which I had from climbing - I think that was the cause.'
After returning to his job a few days later as a full-time lifeguard, he came home from a shift and started throwing up blood.
His worried mother dialled 111 who suggested he see a doctor the following day - and he was sent straight to hospital.
He said: 'While I was in hospital a couple of my friends visited. They said "you look really, really green".
After five days in ITU, his consultant quizzed Mr Owen on everything he'd been doing until he became ill.
'As soon as I told him about the kayaking I was given an antidote to try and fight the disease.
'Weil’s disease is a form of a bacterial infection also known as Leptospirosis that is carried by animals, most commonly in rats and cattle. 
Mr Owen believes bacteria from rats urine in the river water entered his body through his eyes and nose, and grazes from rock climbing
He spent five days in ITU battling the disease, which attacks the kidney and liver. Cases of Weil's disease, symptoms of which can include a purple rash, reached record levels this year
WEIL'S DISEASE - THE DEADLY DISEASE TRANSMITTED IN RAT URINE
Weil’s disease is a form of a bacterial infection also known as leptospirosis. It is carried by animals, most commonly in rats and cattle.
It can be caught by humans through contact with rat or cattle urine, most commonly through contaminated fresh water.
The disease can be transmitted through cuts and scratches or the lining of the mouth, throat or eyes.
Symptoms include a a high temperature ) that is usually between 38 and 40°C, chills, sudden headaches, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, muscle pain - particularly in the calves and lower back, conjunctivitis (irritation and redness of the eyes), a cough, a short-lived rash .
It can be caught by humans through contact with rat or cattle urine, most commonly through contaminated fresh water.
The disease can be transmitted through cuts and scratches or the lining of the mouth, throat or eyes.
Symptoms include a a high temperature ) that is usually between 38 and 40°C, chills, sudden headaches, nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, muscle pain - particularly in the calves and lower back, conjunctivitis (irritation and redness of the eyes), a cough, a short-lived rash .
It can be caught by humans through contact with rat or cattle urine, most commonly occurring through contaminated fresh water.'
It attacks the kidney, liver, before making its way through your organs.
There were 70 hospital admissions for Weil's disease last year - more than any other 12-month period in the past ten years and double the figure for two years ago, according to NHS records.
The illness - also known as leptospirosis - has claimed four lives in the UK since 2009.
Olympic rowing champion Andy Holmes died of Weil's disease in 2010 aged 51, after it is believed the bacteria entered his body through blisters on his hands.
Dr John Knighton, a critical care consultant based in Portsmouth, said: 'The disease is fairly rare. It is a bacteria that is transmitted through the urine of rats; infected rates urinate into an environment that allows the bacteria into humans.
'That either occurs from swallowing or enters the body through a break in the skin be that cuts or grazes.
'Drain workers, farm workers and vets who have occupational exposure are most vulnerable.
'We believe Sam got it because he had been canoeing in the river three weeks before. He has recovered very well but it can be fatal.'
Share or comment on this article
ADS
No comments:
Post a Comment