Sophie Lanigan woke up with a high temperature on a Sunday morning in December 2022. Just 36 hours later, the schoolgirl was on a ventilator, fighting for her life having developed sepsis.<\/p>\n
Lanigan, accompanied by her parents Laura and Keith, spoke on Monday at the launch of the HSE<\/a>\u2019s five-year sepsis strategy, which was published to coincide with Sepsis Awareness Month.<\/p>\n The 16-year-old, from Blanchardstown in Dublin, told The Irish Times that what had started out as Strep-A led to sepsis \u2013 and the then-sixth-class pupil having to have her hands and feet amputated. <\/p>\n Sophie had a high temperature on the Sunday and stayed home from school on the Monday, as her temperature remained high and she was vomiting. Her mother took her to see a GP, and from there she was brought to Temple Street Hospital<\/a> by ambulance. <\/p>\n The then 12-year-old was put on a ventilator, but her body was in septic shock and her organs were already failing. She was transferred to Crumlin children\u2019s hospital<\/a>. Her family later found out that she had contracted Strep-A, which led to sepsis.<\/p>\n \u201cThe medication that they had to give me to save my life, and to like save all my organs, stops the blood flow to my hands and my feet,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n Sophie said this meant the medical team \u201cdidn\u2019t really have much of a choice but to amputate\u201d her hands and feet. <\/p>\n Life since then has been \u201creally tough\u201d, Sophie said, but she has \u201clearned to do most things again\u201d such as writing and drawing, which she loves to do. She is able to walk with the use of prosthetics.<\/p>\n She attended the strategy launch to \u201cspread awareness\u201d of sepsis and post-sepsis syndrome by telling her story. She recently visited D\u00e1il \u00c9ireann to do likewise<\/a>. <\/p>\n The HSE\u2019s sepsis strategy for 2026-2030 focuses on areas including prevention, improving treatment and support for survivors, and research. There were almost 12,000 cases of sepsis and septic shock in Irish hospitals last year, with the death rate from confirmed cases standing at 21.2 per cent. <\/p>\n Michael O\u2019Dwyer, clinical lead of the HSE Sepsis Programme, said the strategy was \u201cvitally important\u201d, as it puts a structure in place for dealing with sepsis and takes account of international best practice. <\/p>\n He said the strategy \u201ctakes a real steer from the patients who\u2019ve been affected by sepsis and their families, and what we can do better\u201d.<\/p>\n O\u2019Dwyer said the symptoms of sepsis can include slurred speech or confusion, extreme temperature or pain, low urine output, skin changes, shortness of breath and feeling like you are going to die.<\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t have to have all of them, and sometimes you don\u2019t have any of them. It\u2019s a very varied set of symptoms,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n \u201cThe important thing is to recognise that your family member or that somebody that you\u2019re caring for just isn\u2019t themselves and they have an infection.\u201d<\/p>\n