14 September 2023 , 13:46
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The parents of a teenage piano prodigy have opened up on their emotional ordeal - after a tragic illness caused all four of his limbs to be amputated.
Sumner County resident Mathias Uribe, 14, at first had cold-like symptoms in mid-June - but soon was struggling to breathe and was taken to the ER, where he was diagnosed with toxic shock syndrome. This refers to the release of toxins into the bloodstream by an infection - where they damage the organs.
Mathias was put onto life support when he went into septic shock - when your body responds in a life-threatening way to infection. His lungs began failing and his body was struggling to pump blood properly, before eventually the doctors had to amputate all four limbs after the skin began to rot and turn gangrenous.
Mathias underwent the terrible ordeal throughout July (GoFundMe)Catalina Uribe, his mother, said in an emotional interview with WSMV-TV that watching old videos of Mathias running and playing piano is “really hard”. But at the same time, she said, “I look at him and I’m like, ‘he’s here’”.
The family are currently fundraising to cover Mathias’ medical bill and the cost of prosthetic limbs - in the hope that he will one day play piano again. Referring to a conversation she had with Mathias, Catalina said: “You are going to have an amazing life. You are going to go to MIGT.
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Mathias' parents, Catalina and Edgar Uribe, made the difficult decision to have their son's limbs amputated (4)“You are going to do whatever you want to do. You don’t have limits because you are here Mathias, you are here,” Catalina added. Mathias’ father said: “I told him we are going to be your arms and legs until we figure all of this out.”
According to Dr Katie Boyle, an ICU paediatrician and the head of Mathias’ care team, the condition is “extremely rare”. She said: “Sometimes when you get the flu, it does set you up for a bacterial infection. But even then, most kids don’t get nearly as sick as Mathias did.”
Though his parents find it hard to look back on videos before their son got sick, they hope he'll be running and playing the piano again with the help of prosthetics (4)Mathias’ condition was streptococcal toxic shock syndrome, caused by group A streptococcus bacteria. These are found in the throat commonly, and are usually harmless. But as Mathias had an infection, his immune system was weakened - leaving him particularly vulnerable to harmless bacteria.
Mathias was rushed to hospital on June 30, and after suffering a cardiac arrest he was airlifted to Monroe Carell Jr Children’s Hospital in Vanderbilt - which had a life support machine.
It became clear after 20 days of treatment that Mathias would have to lose his hands and feet - as they had not received sufficient blood flow in the 12 days he was on the life-support machine. Tissue in a limb can die and become infected if deprived of oxygen and fresh blood for too long, which can leave the sufferer needing an amputation.
Mathias’ left leg was amputated below the knee on July 21, before his right leg was amputated in the same place four days later. His hands were removed on August 1.