A schoolgirl lost both her legs and her right arm after suffering severe complications from meningitis—and her only visible symptom was a ‘bruise’.
Within 24 hours of telling her parents that she didn’t feel well, Penelope Vidal-Walsh, 10, had undergone life-saving emergency surgery at Alder Hey Hospital remove her limbs.
On April 10, Penelope—who was feeling under the weather—went to bed as usual at around 9pm, only to wake up at 2am and begin vomiting.
The Liverpool Echo reports that her father, Ricardo Vidal, put her in the bath, ‘checked her over’ saw nothing of any concern, and put her back to bed.
The next morning, she got up as usual but was sick again after breakfast, prompting her parents to run her another bath.
While in the bath, they noticed a small purple mark on her neck, and later, while dressing her, a similarly coloured rash on her knee.
Penelope’s aunt, Angel Walsh, 35, told the ECHO that her parents used ‘the glass test’ to assess if the rash was cause for concern, as recommended by the NHS.
It involves pressing a glass against a rash to see if it disappears under pressure—if it doesn’t, it could be a sign of a serious infection such as meningitis or septicaemia which needs immediate medical attention.
Because the rash didn’t disappear, Penelope was immediately taken straight to Ormskirk Hospital.
By 9.30am she had been transferred to Alder Hey where she was diagnosed with bacterial meningitis and was rushed to intensive care.
She not only had meningitis but also a ‘very rare fungal infection which caused severe complications’.
Mr Vidal said: ‘As part of her treatment Penelope underwent a triple amputation surgery, which resulted in her losing her lower limbs and her right arm.
‘She is currently undergoing skin grafting surgery as part of her rehabilitation and recovery.
‘She has made huge progress and improvement and is even using a wheelchair and building up her core strength as well as the strength in her left arm.’
Penelope will remain in the critical care unit of Alder Hey until she undergoes skin grafting surgery.
If the procedures are successful she will be discharged in October, six months after initally falling ill.
Her parents have launched a fundraiser to try and provide her with the ‘best possible chance of living an independent life.’
Mr Vidal said: ‘We want her to be able to not let this deter her from being the most energetic, fun, lively girl that she always has been.
‘She remains determined and motivated to keep building her strength.
‘The strength and resilience she shows us every day is just incredible and we are just so proud of her.
‘We want to give her the best quality life and opportunities to fulfil any of her dreams and hopes that she had before this occurred.’
Meningitis is inflammation of the membranes that surround and protect the brain and spinal cord.
Anyone can be affected but at-risk people include those aged under five, 15-to-24 and over 45.
People exposed to passive smoking or with suppressed immune systems, such as patients undergoing chemotherapy, are also more at risk.
The most common forms of meningitis are bacterial and viral, but the former requires urgent treatment at hospital with antibiotics.
Some 10 per cent of bacterial cases are fatal, and of those who survive, one in three suffer complications, including brain damage, hearing loss and limb amputation is a if septicaemia (blood poisoning) occurs.
