Meningitis in your words

Spencer Murray's story

  • Location: Australia
  • Categories: Bacterial meningitis
  • Age: Baby 0-1
  • Relationship: Child
  • Outcome: Full recovery
Spencer Murray
At 3.5 months, my normally calm and happy baby boy spent the whole night screaming. He had fevers of 38 and his eczema (which he had since birth) was terribly flared. He scratched till he bled.

I took him to the GP, who advised me to present to ED due to his temperature and young age. At ED I kept being asked if I was a first time mum... I was basically told to just give panadol and nurefen and address eczma (which they assured me wasnt infected) as usual with wet dressings and steroids. We were sent home and told to have follow up in 48 hours with outpatient clinic.
When I presented back to clinic 48 hours later, bloods were taken as fevers still present and my poor son was miserable. White blood count was not normal so infection suspected. Admitted to hospital. For the next 24 hours my son had antibiotics administered intravenously, however no improvement. Doctors then suspected viral Meningitis, so stopped antibiotics.

The next morning, my son was grey, and listless, and the fontenelle on his head had swollen and was protruding.
I requested an urgent review and then spinal tap was done. Diagnosed with suspected bacterial meningitis. We spent a week in the local hospital becore being transfered to Sydney children’s hospital in randwick. There my son had a central line inserted in his jugular (under general anaesthetic ), a head ultra sound and MRI under general anaesthetic.

We spent 14 nights in randwick hospital. The whole ordeal was 21 very frightening nights.

Ann Murray
April 2021

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