A mum has been hailed by doctors for trusting her instincts and saving the life of her little boy who had woken up with a rash. Zoe Walne, 37, said she spotted an unusual red blotch on her 17-month-old son Teddie, on Easter Sunday.
Teddie's situation then rapidly deteriorated and he is set to lose his fingertips and toes due to meningitis. But medics said he could could have died if it wasn't for Zoe's quick-thinking and she has urged other parents to trust their guts when it comes to the health of their children.
Mum-of-four Zoe told the Mirror that Teddie had been his normal and energetic self the day before waking up with the rash. She had left her partner Duncan Stuart, 39, at their home in Burnley, Lancashire, to go for a walk with her mum, but the blotches then spread to Teddie's tummy.
Zoe called 111 and was told to keep an eye on the rash and to wait for a follow-up call two hours later. But the blotches then started to turn purple and look more like bruises and Zoe took action.
Some images further down this article may prove upsetting.
'Tiniest pink mark'
Speaking to the Mirror, Zoe said: "When he woke up he had a bit of an unusual rash, but it went downhill fast from there. As I was getting him dressed I noticed the tiniest little pink mark on his forehead and thought it was strange.
"I thought 'I'll ask my mum what she thinks it is', but by the time I got to my mum's he had the same little marking on his stomach. I said 'I'm just going to ring 111 because I'm not sure what they are'.
"The woman on the phone told me to keep an eye on them and said that she would get a doctor to ring me back in two hours. But within about 45 minutes the one near his neck looked like a bit of a bruise so I thought 'I'm not waiting'.
"I rung back up and described it again and she said I'm going to ring you an ambulance."
Meningitis suspected
Within minutes paramedics arrived and told Zoe they suspected Teddie had meningitis. Meningitis is an infection of the protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord (meninges) and can cause life-threatening poisoning of the blood known as septicaemia.
Paramedics gave him antibiotics and took Teddie to Blackburn Hospital, by which point Teddie's rash had got even darker.
Zoe said: "It was a blur. When we got to the hospital the doctor said that is textbook meningitis rash.
"They were all rushing around him doing things and they told me to call Duncan and I was starting to get scared. They said it was going to be really unpleasant because they didn't have time to wait for the pain relief to kick in and they needed to drill into his shin bones.
"He was starting to bleed from his mouth and his nose, it was just terrifying."
Put in freezer jacket as his temperature soared
Teddie was sent to Manchester Children's Hospital by emergency transfer, where he was taken into Intensive Care and put into an induced coma. He stayed on life support and was administered a paralysis medicine while doctors placed him into a freezer jacket to try and cool his skyrocketing temperature.
After seven days, Teddie started showing signs of being able to breathe on his own and continued to get stronger with medication to fight the infection. But doctors are now running tests to see if any brain functions have been affected while parts of his body were starved of proper oxygen and blood supply.
Teddie is also being cared for by a plastic surgery team who are trying to heal the huge blisters that have developed where the rash was. Medics have already confirmed that the septicaemia infection has claimed five fingertips and five toes, meaning he will need more operations on his life changing injuries.
GoFundMe appeal launched
Zoe's brother Nathan has launched a GoFundMe page to support the family who rely on Duncan's income as a self-employed gardener, but have now been unable to leave their youngest son's bedside. For now though, the couple say they are just grateful he is alive, and urged other parents to listen to their gut.
Zoe said: "I don't think I have ever prayed as much in my life to be honest. It's the most terrifying thing I think I have ever been through.
"He has been such a fighter through it all. I keep thanking my lucky stars that he's here.
"The doctors said to me 'you need to realise you saved his life, because if you had waited for the doctor to ring you back Teddie wouldn't be here now'.
"They said it could have been caused by someone kissing him, coughing near him, it could have been absolutely anything. They just can't tell you and that's the scariest thing.
"He was running round on the Friday and Saturday the same mischievous little boy eating chocolate.
"You wouldn't have known anything was wrong if you'd have waited because that's the advice you've been given by 111 but you've got to follow your gut, you know your child and if you don't think you can wait, don't wait.
"It was a matter of life and death for Teddie."
To donate to the family's GoFundMe please click here
