Little girl lucky to be alive after common bacteria left her in a coma
A little Victorian girl is lucky to be alive after a common bug left her in a coma and fighting for her life.
Two-year-old Zahlia Adolfo couldn’t walk six months ago after getting sick from a common bacteria known as Strep A, which causes sore throats and fevers.
Her mum Alana said she and her husband got sick, and then little Zahlia fell ill a few days later.
“We got better, she kept going downhill,” Alana said.
Zahlia’s father John said she went on an incubator and then had to be placed in an induced coma.
The then one-year-old’s organs shut down.
“She was on life support for 10 days and during the whole time no one could tell us whether she would make it,” Mrs Adolfo said.
For seven long weeks, Zahlia’s parents sat by her bedside until finally they saw her heart beat again.
Mrs Adolfo said the heartbeat "gave us hope".
Several blood transfusions and antibiotics were needed to fight the bacteria.
Royal Children’s Hospital Associate Professor Mike Starr said most people carry the bacteria in their throat “without it doing anything”.
“Some of us get a sore throat or tonsillitis then some people can have serious life-threatening illness like Zahlia did,” he said.
Murdoch Children’s Research Institute Professor Andrew Steer said “you don’t get much more super than this super bug”. He added it affects people “so rapidly and makes them sick quickly”.
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Researchers are now investigating why some people are more susceptible to Strep A than others.
The Murdoch Children’s Research Institute in Melbourne is one of four centres worldwide developing a vaccine.
“The idea would be we would have this vaccine in the childhood immunisation schedule,” Professor Steer said.
Luckily, apart from a slightly enlarged heart Zahlia doesn't appear to have any long-term side effects.
Her mum said if she survived the illness they would throw her a unicorn party.
Zahlia’s story of survival gave the family more than one reason to celebrate her recent second birthday.
