Florida man recovers from contracting flesh-eating bacteria during spring break

ORLANDO, Fla. –

A Florida man who contracted a rare bacterial infection in March explained his recovery to Jorge Estevez, a WFTV presenter, on Tuesday night.

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& # 39; Do not avoid water & # 39 ;: Man who ate meat # bacteria describes its recovery https://t.co/Ve4lVtDzXa #wftv pic.twitter.com/LNO89WY78q

– WFTV Channel 9 (@WFTV) July 31, 2019

Lively said he contracted necrotizing fasciitis, commonly known as flesh-eating bacteria, during his visit to the St. Johns River during spring break.

Lively said that he was coming out of the water when someone pushed him back into the river. He said that he had scratched his calf on a nail in a dock.

"I did not really think about it, it was just a small black mark," he said. "The night was terrible, I felt so sick, so upset all the time."

Lively said that he was going home the next day to celebrate his mother's birthday.

"Back home, I fell asleep immediately," he said. "I just said" Happy Birthday "and I went straight to my room, I was so tired."

Deanne Schulz, Lively 's mother, said that he was limping and collapsed from exhaustion.

"After four hours he was incredibly ill – so sick that he had a fever, he was vomiting, he thought he was having the flu," she said. . "He came home the next day and he was not himself."

Lively said he had undergone three surgeries during his eleven-day hospital stay.

His surgeon, Dr. Nathan DeAngelis, said that Lively's youth, his state of health and his swift search for medical treatment were critical to his recovery.

"These infections can be quite aggressive, so if you do not catch them early and do not remove this dying tissue, this bacteria can continue to spread along the leg and can be very devastating for people," he said. said DeAngelis. "Members can be lost."

He said that few patients are as lucky as Lively.

"Fortunately for him, he was one of the lucky (who) did not need a lot of surgeries," said DeAngelis. "But I've seen people undergo multiple surgeries the same day and lose limbs."

Lively, who has totally recovered, said he hoped people would become more aware of the risks of infection but would not let fear stop them from enjoying their lives.

"Be aware of everything, because I did not know what it was before it happened," he said. "Do not avoid any water immediately, just be aware of what's going on and try to have fun too."

Click here to learn more about the bacteria, its symptoms and its treatment. Click here to see photos of Lively infection. (Caution: some photos are graphic.)

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