Lorena R.

I am a kidney failure patient who has been on hemodialysis for almost five years after a failed kidney transplant. (Sepsis and Kidney Transplants) I’ve had an AV fistula for almost 6 years now, so it’s had its good use. One day at treatment it got infiltrated, which cause a huge hematoma, which led us to no other option but getting a dialysis catheter placed in.(Sepsis and Invasive Devices)

Two weeks had gone by after the catheter placement and I noticed that the pain never went away. I thought: “ok, maybe it’s because I haven’t had a catheter in years.” One day I went to get lunch, and I realized I could barely eat. I got home and was throwing up non stop, I felt really hot, but I figured it was the food. I wanted to avoid the ER at all costs, so I spent all day throwing up while burning up. It wasn’t until I tried standing up and I fell over that I thought maybe I should go. It was already late at night.

Thankfully upon arrival the nurses were quick, they took my temp (105) and my BP (heart rate was over 200) and immediately took me to the back as an active code sepsis. They accessed my power port and started antibiotics quicker than I’ve ever seen, and the doctor told me had I waited until the morning (like I was planning too) I wouldn’t have woken up. That night was pretty much spent trying to keep me alive as my blood pressure bottomed out and wouldn’t come up, my potassium and sugar levels were through the roof, and my fever was uncontrollable.

After that scare, I got the catheter replaced and spent a good almost month in the hospital because the sepsis had caused an acute damage to my lungs where I was dependent of oxygen. They were going to send me home on it, but being that I’m 21 they worked until they could get me off which thankfully they did.