A little girl was temporarily paralysed after a flu complication which mum spotted when she noticed she was tiptoeing. Aurora Burden-Schott, five, appeared to be recovering from the flu when she started to complain of muscle pains.Her mum, Kota, 27, noticed she was tiptoeing around and consulted a paediatrician.
They recommended Aurora had lots of fluids but when she woke up from a nap with no motion in the bottom half of her legs Kota rushed her to hospital. The little girl spent three days in hospital being pumped with fluids and was only able to walk again after two days – after contracting a complication of the flu, rhabdomyolysis.
Rhabdomyolysis is a serious medical condition that occurs when damaged muscles release proteins and electrolytes into the bloodstream. Aurora is now regaining strength and Kota wants to raise awareness of the symptoms of this life-threatening complication.
Kota, a nail technician, said: “She was struggling walking and complaining of really bad leg pain. I noticed she was tiptoeing around.She was having so much pain in her legs and couldn’t lay her foot flat.”
Aurora fell ill with the influenza A in late January. Kota said: “The symptoms first started as typical flu.She had nausea and vomiting and headaches.It lasted for four days.We had two days where it seemed her symptoms were alleviating.I thought we were at the tail end.”
But Aurora suddenly started complaining of muscle pain and Kota called a doctor who advised her to focus on getting her lots of fluids and to bring her into hospital if her pain continued. Kota said: “Later on we had taken a little nap and when woke up that’s when she was unable to use her legs.She had no motion in the bottom half of her body.
“She couldn’t wiggle her toes. It was really scary.It was almost as if she was paralyzed from the waist down.She said her legs felt very heavy.”
She underwent blood tests and an x-ray which revealed Aurora’s muscle enzyme levels were at 950. A normal range for a child her age is between 150 to 200.She was diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis – a rare complication of influenza where your muscles break down.
Kota said: “The virus is attacking the muscles and they deteriorate.”
Aurora was put on an IV drip and monitored. Kota said: “After the end of the first day she was bale to get some movement in her legs. She was able to walk after the second.”
The little girl was able to go home after three days – and doctors believe her complication may have been brought on due to her recent tonsillectomy, adenoid removal and ear tube placement. They believe this could have left her immune system weak.
Left untreated rhabdomyolysis can be life-threatening and cause kidney damage. Luckily, Aurora is recovering well.
Kota said: “It could have caused some pretty serious permanent damage. It didn’t cause any damage to the kidneys.She was able to recover great.”
Now Kota wants to raise awareness to make sure people don’t ignore muscle aches – which are a common symptom of the flu. She said: “I’m glad I trusted my gut and realized something wasn’t right.People assume kids are going to have muscle aches when they get the flu.”