"It's happened very fast": Rare strep infection leads to amputation for BC girl
“The sicknesses just took over her body,” Terry Ma said, speaking about his seven-year-old daughter, Taitlyn, from BC Children’s Hospital.
His little girl was smiling and playing just months ago, but now, she remains in a hospital room, recovering from life-altering surgery and her fight is still far from over.
Doctors had to perform a series of amputations on Taitlyn, a heartbreaking result of the toll a rare illness has taken on her body.
He says he will never forget the day he had to cancel Taitlyn’s birthday and take her to the hospital after she had developed a cough and mild fever a week before.
It started out as a seemingly common cold but after three months in the hospital, Taitlyn and her family were faced with a life-altering diagnosis. The infection would claim one of her legs.
Ma says their family is still in shock over the devastating turn in her health. Two to three days after his daughter fell ill, her infection seemed to gradually worsen as she began experiencing chills, her lips turning purple, and they noticed drastic changes to her breathing.
Taitlyn and her family visited the BC Children’s Hospital Emergency Department.
Ma said, when they arrived, they were taken into a room right away.
“Pretty much from there on it was like a blur. She was in the Intensive care unit (ICU) right away,” he explained.
Photo of Taitlyn Ma in hospital (Photo submitted by Terry Ma)
Not long after being admitted, it became clear Taitlyn had a complicated infection. Doctors detected bacteria in her blood, diagnosing her with parainfluenza, pneumonia, and most notably, an invasive Group A streptococcus (iGAS) infection.
“Just an accumulation of things. Her case was very complicated. There’s many things going on and tumbled on top of each other,” Ma said.
In a statement to Daily Hive, BC Children’s Hospital said a non-invasive group A streptococcal infection is a relatively common childhood infection. When children are infected the most common symptoms are strep throat, impetigo, and scarlet fever.
However, in rare cases, “streptococcal bacteria can lead to more severe infection and complications, including pneumonia, necrotizing fasciitis, or sepsis,” the hospital explained. This infection is called invasive group A strep infections (iGAS) and can be potentially life-threatening,
“The timing of it was so tragic”
Ma describes his daughter as a “typical girl” who is active and outgoing. He says his family is outdoorsy so she participates in many activities like biking and swimming. She also enjoys ballet and performing arts.
As her school year was coming to an end, she was preparing for an upcoming ballet dance recital – even going through a recent dress fitting.
Photo of Taitlyn Ma’s recital dress. (Photo submitted by Terry Ma)
(Photo submitted by Terry Ma)
Plans were also set for a birthday celebration as she was turning seven years old on June 6.
However, she fell critically ill just days before.
“The timing of it was so tragic,” Ma said.
“Worst birthday present ever”
Since being in hospital, Taitlyn was intubated after she went into septic shock.
“So [her body] pretty much shut down,” said Ma.
She experienced complications such as respiratory issues, acute kidney failure, and sepsis. A neck tube and a tummy tube were eventually needed as well.
“On her birthday, she actually had surgery,” Ma said. “So that was her birthday present. She said ‘That’s the worst birthday present ever.'”
Taitlyn was intubated for about 10 days and was in the ICU for weeks.
“She was pretty much relying on the machine and healthcare system and the workers,” Ma said.
“At that point, it was really scary as a parent to see your child pretty much just laying there.”
After nearly 12 days in hospital, Taitlyn’s dad said she started to slowly improve and regain consciousness. He said, around this time she started to open her eyes and move with arms and legs slightly.
A month in the hospital is when her breathing improved.
When Daily Hive spoke with Terry, he said, “She’s back medically.”
“She’s really just being her normal self which is energetic, silly and fun.”
Photo of Taitlyn Ma in hospital (Photo submitted by Terry Ma)
While Taitlyn recovers from her sickness, it still presents complications that will alter the rest of her life.
Blood clots have caused her fingertips, her left foot and right leg (from her calf down) to turn black.
“Essentially it’s just hardening, it’s dehydrating,” Ma said. “We were just holding out for [a] miracle and praying to see if there’s any improvement but the likelihood is very low now.”
Taitlyn’s family has been told her fingers will be auto-amputated “so they’ll just fall off on its own. She’ll lose the tips and the nails,” he explained.
“But she’ll adjust and hopefully there’ll be a new normal,” Ma assured. “Right now she can still kind of hold the spoon and hold the pens and draw and colour… But picking up coins or doing LEGO … we might not be able to do that again.”
Her left toes and front part of her foot will be amputated as well but Ma said, “The majority of the foot should be intact and usable.”
This week, Taitlyn is undergoing surgery for the amputation of her lower right leg and foot.
“The road ahead is gonna be very long,” Ma said, but added, “She’ll be resilient.”
The “big picture”
Before Taitlyn became ill, Ma and his family had heard of Group A streptococcus when his eldest child fell sick. However, she did not experience complications as severe as Taitlyn.
While sad and scary, Ma said he is focusing on the “big picture.”
“She’s alive and prosthesis and technology nowadays can help you help individuals walk again and hopefully she’ll be able to enjoy the things that she loves doing prior to being ill,” he said.
Photo of Taitlyn Ma (Photo submitted by Terry Ma)
Ma and his family are now moving forward and educating themselves on how to support Taitlyn and transition her back into her life.
“It’s tough to see a kid just laying there for a couple of weeks. She’s been through hell and back,” he said.
“I think she’ll overcome and I think she’ll return to doing the stuff that she loves. But we don’t know how she’ll react obviously … getting back into society, going back to school … hopefully, she’ll be able to fit right in.”
The family has set up a GoFundMe with the aim to raise funds for medical costs and charity.
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