Joriel Rosario

Joriel is a sweet 6-year-old first grader. Almost a year ago, in March 2024, Joriel was dealing with ear pain and fever. He was taken to the ER, prescribed ear drops, and advised to keep rotating Tylenol and Motrin for the fever. A few days later, he was rushed back to the ER with the same symptoms, and this time, we were told that he had the “flu.” He was sent home and instructed to keep giving him Tylenol .

Two days later, Dad rushed him back to the ER because his symptoms had deteriorated; he was extremely weak, had strong headaches, fever, vomiting , and could barely breathe. A few hours later, he was diagnosed with Group A strep infection, causing sepsis; his organs were shutting down, and he had to be transferred to the nearest PICU. (Sepsis and Group A Streptococcus)

He was hallucinating, his oxygen levels were too low, and he was having a hard time breathing. After being transferred, the doctors decided they needed to paralyze and intubate Joriel because his lungs were deteriorating. On April 8, his condition wasn’t improving, and he was transferred to a children’s hospital, where he was placed on ECMO. He was treated for sepsis due to Streptococcus pyogenes, anemia, aneurysm, cerebral venous sinus thrombosis, necrotizing pneumonia, pulmonary embolism, toxic shock syndrome, and hip arthritis. He spent weeks in the PICU fighting for his life. His lungs were improving, and he was moved to inpatient care.

A few days later, he complained of pain in his left leg , and after several tests , doctors discovered a new bacteria. The next morning, he was taken to the OR for a washout in his left hip , and two days later, he returned for a second procedure . After being intubated for so long, he had a hard time digesting food and had to remain on a nasogastric tube. On May 17, he was transferred to a rehabilitation center, where he spent three weeks undergoing physical therapy, speech therapy, and feeding therapy. He was discharged on June 7, and a few weeks later, he completed outpatient therapy. In August, he was finally able to remove his nasogastric tube and returned to school. He’s still dealing with a few health issues , but nothing major. We’re so thankful that he survived sepsis ! Joriel is a sepsis survivor ❤️

Source: Stephanie Malave, Mother