Popular dancer was killed by a flesh eating bug
A FLESH-EATING bacterial infection that killed a popular Luton salsa teacher progressed so quickly that a senior hospital consultant found it “difficult to get his head around”, an inquest has heard.
Maria de Miguel Garcia, 45, died on August 15 last year from septic shock caused by necrotising fasciitis following routine keyhole knee surgery two days earlier.
Her family say that had the infection been diagnosed earlier Maria might have lived, and say lessons need to be learned from her treatment.
Miss Garcia’s knee arthroscopy was carried out at the private Spire hospital in Harpenden, to which she had been referred as an NHS patient after picking up an injury from dancing.
The operation, on Friday August 13, took just 17 minutes and went smoothly, but early on Sunday morning she called the hospital to say her leg was extremely painful and swollen.
She was admitted and after an assessment, was taken to the Luton & Dunstable Hospital by ambulance just before 10am with suspected deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
It was not until around 6pm that evening that staff at the hospital diagnosed her as having necrotising fasciitis, a rare infection which can be often be successfully treated if diagnosed early.
It was decided to amputate her leg and cut away the infected tissue, but Miss Garcia, of Coltsfoot Green, Lewsey Farm, died shortly after the operation.
After the inquest, held yesterday at Dunstable Coroner’s Court, Miss Garcia’s brother-in-law, Professor John Glynn, said the family were concerned that the diagnosis of a bacterial infection could have been made earlier.
He said: “We just really can’t appreciate why broader indications weren’t taken up.
“It could have been only her leg that was lost and not her life. Obviously we can’t bring her back but we hope lessons can be learned.”
The inquest heard from staff at the L&D who said that until later in the afternoon when an ultrasound had been carried out, her symptoms were consistent with DVT.
But an email from L&D radiologist Dr Dattani, read out by the assistant director of public health at NHS Luton, Kelly O’Neill, says she raised the possibility of necrotising fasciitis several hours before it was finally diagnosed.
Dr Rachel Homer, specialist registrar in anaethesia and intensive care, said a blood flow problem was the most apparent cause of the pain and swelling when she saw Miss Garcia.
She said: “Miss Garcia was alert and talking. I was wondering whether it could have been a clot in an artery rather than a vein.
“Infection was a consideration but it certainly wasn’t top of my list.”
The wound from Miss Garcia’s surgery did not appear infected but the skin on her right thigh was described as ‘mottled and blueish’, and began to blister following an ultrasound, which discovered there were no blood clots.
She was taken for surgery at 7.30pm and Dr Mark Patten, consultant in anaesthesia and intensive care, said that the infection spread rapidly across Miss Garcia’s body as the surgeons removed the infected flesh, a procedure known as debridement.
He said: “There came a point when all of us there realised that because of the extent of the debridement and the extent of the disease, that the possibility of survival had gone. All four clinicians felt that if her heart was to stop that we would not proceed to resuscitate her because it would just be futile.”
Mr Patten said staff had gone back and looked at whether they could have diagnosed the infection earlier.
He added: “It’s very hard because the changes, particularly the skin changes, do occur very rapidly.
“You could be quite happy to say it was DVT a few hours earlier and then it becomes clear that it is necrotising fasciitis.
“You’re thinking, ‘Is this a DVT?’ and you start going down that route and perhaps you narrow your diagnosis too soon.”
Coroner David Morris is expected to deliver his verdict on Miss Garcia’s death in early March.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Luton
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 21 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 11 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 20 mph
Wind direction: East
Your view
Please sign in to be able to comment on this story.