A mom went from having a miscarriage to becoming a triple amputee and having to undergo a life-saving kidney transplant after doctors reportedly failed to notice she was suffering from sepsis -- an invasion of the bloodstream by bacteria.
Magdalena Malec is now taking legal action against the Luton and Dunstable University Hospital in Britain for the harrowing ordeal that resulted in the amputation of both her legs, an arm, all her fingers on her remaining hand, and a kidney, the South West News Service reported.
The mother of two was told she had suffered a miscarriage a few weeks after learning she was pregnant in 2014 but continued to experience heavy bleeding and stomach cramps after being sent home with painkillers.
When she returned to the hospital the staff informed her she had suffered an ectopic pregnancy, which occurs when a fertilized egg attaches outside the womb.
Malec underwent surgery to have a fallopian tube and the fetus removed, then while in recovery developed gangrene, which caused her body tissue to die.
That could have been avoided if medical staff had recognized the warning signs for sepsis and followed correct procedures, Malec said, per the South West News Service.
She had her limbs amputated six months later and had to return to the hospital for dialysis three times a week.
“I was waiting for six months for the amputation of my limbs, with stinking and decaying legs and arms,” she said, per The Telegraph.
“Nothing will restore what I had. I will never paint my nails again, I will never make a ponytail for my daughter. I do not trust doctors and I am very skeptical about all medical appointments and diagnoses.”
During this time, Malec’s relationship with her husband also allegedly broke down.
Her lawyer, David Thomas, said the “catastrophic chain of events which led to Malec’s near death and horrendous injuries were completely avoidable if the hospital trust had followed its own sepsis protocol,” Fox News reported.
The NHS has apologized for missing the classic signs of sepsis that Malec was experiencing, the South West News Service noted.
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