Amelia's recovery sends out message on World Meningitis Day
23.04.10
A LEEDS family have told of their relief after their "fighting" baby daughter battled back against deadly meningitis.
Doctors feared five-month-old Amelia Dawson might not survive the night after her parents rushed her to Leeds General Infirmary in February.
But the hardly youngster defied the odds to make a good recovery, although she now has epilepsy.
Her parents Craig Dawson and Sarah Leeson are telling their story to help raise awareness on World Meningitis Day tomorrow.
She recalled how Amelia initially had a cold, high temperature and was vomiting her feeds. Her older brother Patrick, four, had also had a cold.
Sarah, 28, said: "Amelia seemed happy in herself so we just thought she was teething but then she became more lethargic. I had rung the doctors three days in a row to book an appointment but they were full.
"Then, at about 11am one morning, things took a turn for the worse. Amelia was on her play mat and had been quite for a while. I thought she was asleep then noticed her eyes were wide open.
"She was just staring into one corner and her body was stiff. She was conscious and able to grip my finger but alarm bells were ringing and we rushed her to hospital straightaway."
Sarah said staff at Leeds General Infirmary were fantastic, with a doctor noticing that Amelia's fontanel - the soft spot on a baby's head - was bulging.
She was given antibiotics straightaway as a precaution before they carried out a CT scan and lumber puncture.
The lumber puncture confirmed pneumococcal meningitis - the most deadly strain of the disease.
Sarah added: "She was really ill by this point and one doctor later told us that they didn't expect her to make the night.
"It all seems a bit of a blur. I knew she was in the best place and that there was nothing I could do to help at this point. We just had to hope for the best."
Amelia gradually improved over the next two weeks but suddenly her back began to arch and she had a seizure.
She was sent home after three weeks but is now on medication for epilepsy and Sarah needs to carry rescue medication at all times in case Amelia has a seizure.
Sarah added: "We have to take Amelia back for another MRI scan soon because there's clouding on her brain. This might affect her development and learning but we don't know that yet.
"I want to alert other parents to the dangers of meningitis. I always associated it with a rash but now know that not everyone gets a rash and that it often appears once someone's critically ill.
"Meningitis is a brain disease so there are many other symptoms to be alert for - like Amelia's fontanel bulging.
"We feel that were very lucky that Amelia's pulled through, and although we don't know what the future holds, it's really important to help raise awareness of meningitis."
Classic symptoms of meningitis are a headache, stiff neck and a dislike of bright light. Other symptoms can include difficulty supporting own weight, fever, vomiting and diarrhoea and confusion and drowsiness.
Common symptoms of meningococcal septicaemia include aching limbs, leg pain, cold hands and feet and a rash which starts like pin prick marks and develops rapidly into purple bruising.
Not everyone gets all the symptoms, and they can appear in any order. As the disease can kill within hours, swift treatment is vital as delays could lead to death or survivors being left with disabling after-effects.
Around 300 people die from the disease each year and six families a week face the devastation of losing a loved-one.
The three meningitis charities in the UK are members of the Confederation of Meningitis Organisations (CoMO), which has organised World Meningitis Day on April 24 to increase public awareness.
MeningitisUK · Registered Charity No.1076774
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