Ethan's Treatment for Bacterial Blood Infection

The morning of May 26, Ethan woke with an upset stomach. Over the next few days, he had what appeared to be a bad stomach flu. On day 4, his symptoms intensified. Ethan developed a fever of 105F, agonizing stomach and low back pain, and dehydration. His Mom took him to Urgent Care, where the doctor immediately sent them to the ER for possible appendicitis.

At the ER, Ethan was treated for dehydration with IV fluids. An X-Ray and CAT scan ruled out appendicitis. The ER doctor released him after 8 hours, assuming he had a stomach virus.

Over the next 2 days at home, Ethan’s condition worsened. The dehydration returned and Ethan began passing blood and had blurred vision. Scary! His Mom rushed him back to the ER for the second time that week. This time, Ethan’s condition was recognized as serious. He was immediately admitted to the hospital.

At the hospital, blood tests revealed that Ethan had a serious infection – Salmonella in the bloodstream. While most people infected with Salmonella in the GI tract can recover in a few days at home (from food poisoning for example), Ethan’s infection had advanced and entered his bloodstream, making it much more severe and serious.

Ethan was treated at the hospital for 4 days with IV antibiotics. Ethan showed incredible strength and bravery as he was getting multiple blood draws per day, and a total of 4 IV insertions as the IV repeatedly failed. The nights were pure hell. Ethan was in a lot of pain and was making constant trips to the bathroom - often hourly, with Mom’s help as he was weak and attached to the IV. He couldn’t sleep, couldn’t get comfortable, and couldn’t understand why this awful illness had been wrecking his body for so long.

After 4 days on IV antibiotics, Ethan improved enough to go home. While still not symptom-free, Ethan is continuing antibiotic treatment at home and is expected to make a full recovery.

So, how did Ethan get Salmonella? No one else around him had been sick. Ethan’s doctors theorized that he contracted Salmonella while handling reptiles at a Reptile Club meeting that occurred 4 days before symptoms started. 60-90% of reptiles carry Salmonella on their bodies.

The funds raised will be used to help Ethan’s Mom pay for medical costs, which are totaling thousands of a dollars on a high deductible insurance plan. His Mom had to take a week off work - unpaid - to care for him, and will be taking additional unpaid time off to care for him during his recovery.