Doctors Mistakenly Diagnosed Litte Boy With Chicken Pox, But It Was A Deadly Allergic Reaction

A TOT was left fighting for his life after being mistakenly diagnosed with chickenpox – but was actually suffering from a lethal allergic reaction.

Three-year-old Joel Greaves, from Leicester, had to be put on a ventilator and was wrapped in bandages to help heal his sore and blistered skin.

Doctors first diagnosed the tot with chickenpox but soon realised it was Steven's Johnson Syndrome - a rare but life-threatening skin condition that is usually an allergic reaction to medication or an infection.

Devastated mum, Tammy, 32, was told by doctors that they couldn’t guarantee that her son would survive as one-in-five die from the condition.

Tammy, who works as a veterinary nurse, said: "He had suffered from chicken pox once before and the symptoms were very similar so we thought it was unlikely he would have it for a second time but we had no idea what else it could be.

"That was until his whole body started to blister and his eyes were swollen shut."

Joel was unrecognisable as his body was so swollen and had to undergo an eight-hour operation to remove all the dead skin.

After nine weeks in hospital, Joel pulled through and went back home last December where he was reunited with his twin brother Louie and sister Laila, six.

The mum-of-three added: "Louie was ok for the first few weeks but he then started to ask questions about his brother.

"It was heart-breaking that we were all separated but Joel was so ill that I needed to be at his bedside constantly."

Joel had to learn how to walk, talk and eat again and was bandaged up for three weeks before Tammy saw her son's skin again, who has minimal scars.

She added: "I was terrified what would be underneath. Despite being in pain and having sore skin for so many weeks, Joel never moaned and thankfully the condition didn't destroy his eyesight which it can often do.

"I'm so proud of how far he has come, looking back I can't believe how close we came to losing him."

Steven's Johnson Syndrome is so rare that Tammy found herself looking up the condition online to find answers about her son's illness.

She now wants to raise awareness of the syndrome to help others recognise the symptoms.

"Joel was one of the lucky ones but if this condition isn't diagnosed and treated quickly enough it can be fatal,” she added.

Culled from The Sun.

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