A Houston daycare teacher loses a foot to flesh-eating bacteria after doctors performed an emergency surgery to save his life.
Despite the ordeal, Raul Reyes remains positive and hopes to get back to living a normal life.
Flesh-Eating Bacteria
Last February, 26-year-old daycare teacher Raul Reyes's foot had become swollen for a few days. However, he believed that it was simply because of a time when he hurt his foot while at work.
He also had a blister on his foot, which he believed to be shoe-related. However, when he had woken up to find that his blister had covered his entire foot, he went to a clinic, where he was told to immediately go to the emergency room.
According to his wife Joseline, doctors determined from X-rays that Raul had a flesh-eating bacterial infection. Because of the infection, he needed to undergo an emergency surgery to save his life.
Further, although there had been a chance that the doctors could amputate his foot, they said they would try their best not to. After the surgery, the surgeon told Joseline that they did try their best to get most of the bacteria out, however, hey had to amputate his foot in order to prevent the spread of the infection and ultimately, save his life.
The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention states that necrotizing fasciitis spreads quickly. Once the toxins made by the bacteria causes the tissue to die, that is when the infected individual can lose limbs or even die.
Where Did He Get The Infection?
Flesh-eating bacteria or necrotizing fasciitis has previously been reported to have come from the most commonplace sources. In fact, people have died from the infection after falling off a bike, eating infected raw oysters, and swimming with a fresh tattoo.
In Raul Reyes's case, doctors believe he may have gotten the infection through an open wound because of an ingrown toenail.
According to the CDC, good wound care is key in preventing a bacterial infection. Whenever one has an open wound, some of the things to do to prevent the spread of infection are keeping the open wounds covered with clean bandages, immediately applying first aid even on minor wounds, washing hands as well as avoiding swimming in whirlpools, hot tubs, natural bodies of water, and swimming pools.
Ready To Get Back On Track
According to family members, Raul is already eager to begin therapy and get his life back on track, especially with the messages he gets from his very young students. He is said to be improving every day and keeps his attitude toward recovery quite positive.
However, he does not have the medical insurance that he needs to get a prosthetic foot, so his family set up a GoFundMe page so he can begin his road to recovery.
