A woman died after catching flesh-eating bacteria allegedly during a vacation in St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida. She was not diagnosed during her first two doctor visits.
She was 50 years old.
Flesh-Eating Bacteria Possibly Led To Woman's Death
The woman, Carol Martin, was with her husband Richard Martin when she went on vacation. They stayed at the Days Inn in Clearwater, Florida. After the trip, Carol found that she had a nickel-sized infection on her buttocks. Richard believes that his wife's decision to use a hot tub during their trip was the cause of her infection and her death, WRTV reported.
Richard describes the infection as a pimple that had appeared on Carol's right butt cheek. The infection started to grow and became painful so she had to seek medical attention for it. Carol went to the doctor two separate times, and she was prescribed antibiotics and given heating pads to stop the infection from spreading.
After the two visits with the treatments not working to stop the spread of the infection, doctors did a biopsy during Carol's third visit. Results of the biopsy showed that she had contracted flesh-eating bacteria.
Carol's infection continued to spread and she would later have to be rushed into surgery to treat the infection. After the surgery, Carol spent 16 days in the intensive care unit. She died over two months after the surgery on May 5.
Hot Tub Theory
Her husband continues to push his theory that Carol contracted flesh-eating bacteria after she went into the hot tube. Richard told WFLA that Carol was the only person out of the group that went in the hot tub during the vacation. He added that no one else that was on the trip with them became sick after returning home.
So far, Carol's death has not been officially attributed to flesh-eating bacteria. The Marion County coroner's office would take up to three months to determine whether or not Carol's death was caused by it or not. Tissue samples have already been collected from her and they will have to be tested further.
Flesh-eating bacteria affects between 600 to 1200 people in the United States every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It can spread quickly and affects the body's soft tissue by killing it.
