A woman in Utah is in critical condition after sustaining 15 spider bites while out fishing. SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH The bites caused her to develop flesh-eating germs, and on July 22 she was brought to the hospital.
It is thought that Susi Feltch-Malohifo’ou, 59, was bitten by one or more spiders while on a recent fishing vacation with family and friends to Mirror Lake in the Uinta Mountains.
Susi, a well-liked community leader and the director of the nonprofit Pacific Islander Knowledge to Action Resources, reportedly started to feel ill immediately after the trip. She then had COVID and flu testing, and the results were negative.
She woke up on Sunday morning with a headache, a temperature, and some pain, according to her son Adrian Swensen, who spoke to FOX Television Stations. The symptoms got worse to the point that we thought she needed to see a doctor, he continued.
Adrian claims that when his mother was examined by specialists, they discovered 15 spider bites, some of which had become severe cases of flesh-eating bacteria.
Susi is thought to be suffering with necrotizing fasciitis. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, this disorder causes tearing of the flesh and is brought on by several microorganisms. It enters the body by scrapes or burns as well as spider bites, particularly those caused by brown recluse spiders.
How does necrotizing fasciitis manifest?
The bacteria’s infection destroys the fat, connective tissue, and muscles that are found beneath the skin’s surface. On the body, this bacterial infection can appear everywhere. But it frequently affects the perineum, genitalia, and extremities.
Necrotizing fasciitis can cause sepsis and organ failure if left untreated. Surgery can be required to remove the affected tissue if antibiotics are unable to do so.
According to family, Susi has undergone surgery six times
Due to Susi’s serious illnesses, 10 pounds of her flesh had to be surgically removed. They informed the family that Susi’s stomach and colon had also sustained damage as a result.
The family of Susi Feltch-Malohifo’ou has organized a fundraising for her.
She has undergone emergency surgery six times, and her family has maintained her on a ventilator in the intensive care unit, according to the GoFundMe page they set up for her family to raise money to pay for her medical needs. “Every time they pull her off of it, just when we think she’s getting better,” the post continued, “they tell us she needs to go back to surgery again, which means she goes back on the ventilator.”
Adrian Swensen, her son, who organized the fundraiser, described Susi as “both a warrior and a believer. She has faced numerous challenges, difficulties, barriers, and disappointments throughout her life, but she has always risen above them to assist as many people as she can.”
The charity event has so far raised $8,625 of its $15,000 target.