It All Started With A Fever, Part 1

Initial Phase: The Calm Before the Storm

The Social Worker at Primary Children’s Hospital suggested that writing in a journal can be therapeutic. Even more, perhaps sharing our journey these past few weeks may help other families with children who suffer from this rare, devastating condition.

Saturday, June 24th, 2017

Seemed like a normal day. Our 17-year-old son, Drew, worked an afternoon shift at the Fitness Center, then grabbed a quick bite to eat before leaving with his friends to spend the evening at a park in Taylorsville for the “Taylorsville Days” carnival and games. He told me the next day that just before the fireworks started at dusk, he started not feeling well.

Sunday, June, 25th, 2017

He awoke with a fever of 102. We let him stay home from church, but after taking some ibuprofen, he was feeling better and his temperature had come down. He helped do some home teaching with me, and then that evening he passed off his last merit badge needed to complete his Eagle Scout.

Monday, June 26th, 2017

He awoke with a slightly higher fever of 103. He laid on the couch in the living room not feeling well, but nothing specific beyond the fever. No cough. No vomiting. No sore throat. His mother took him to his pediatrician who said he had a virus and to just continue treating the fever with ibuprofen and acetaminophen and plenty of fluids. He even told him he could return to work so long as he felt up to it.

Tuesday, June 27th, 2017

His fever peaked Tuesday morning at 103.7. His fevers were always the highest in the morning because the ibuprofen would wear off while he was sleeping, but generally the fevers responded very well to the medication and all seemed well. Drew returned to work that afternoon.

Wednesday, June 28th, 2017

His fever was lower this morning, but still 101. He said he felt a little better and we thought he was starting to get over the virus. He even worked a double shift today as his mother and little sister headed off to Stake Young Women’s Camp up Ogden Canyon. However, he wasn’t very hungry and didn’t eat much dinner.

Thursday, June 29th, 2017

I thought I would let him sleep in and all seemed well as I headed to work in the morning at 7:00, but I got an urgent telephone call from Drew at 8:15 AM. He was vomiting uncontrollably and “super dizzy.” He couldn’t move without throwing up. He also complained of double vision and said he coudn’t see anything for a few minutes. He was scared and crying. I rushed home to help him (his mother and sister were up at camp). The fever was gone, replaced with cool and clammy skin, and in fact, he was drenched in sweat. He had thrown up about 20 times and it took us 40 minutes to get him dressed and walk out to the car. He threw up repeatedly. We returned to the pediatrician’s office and his blood pressure was so low (about 93/56) and he was so dehydrated, they called an ambulance to transport him to the hospital. His pediatrician again felt that everything pointed to a viral infection, but he needed fluids and some nausea medication, so we were transported to the Emergency Room at St. Mark’s Hospital.

While at St. Mark’s, he received a battery of tests, 3000 CCs of fluid through an IV, and a couple of doses of Zofran (for nausea). After about 5 hours, he was finally stabilized with no more nausea and plenty of fluids. The doctor at St. Mark’s said all the blood work and tests came back normal except for some elevated liver enzymes, which he explained often creep up with a viral infection. Again, everything pointed to some non-specific viral infection, but he was stable and no longer running a fever. We were sent home about dinner time. He didn’t feel up to eating much, but we encouraged him to drink some 7-Up. He did throw up twice more just before bedtime, but a little more Zofran helped him to stop. When the leaders at Girls’ Camp heard Drew was in the Emergency Room, they insisted on brining his mother and sister down to be with Drew to allay their fears and assure them that all was OK. They actually appreciated the chance to quickly shower, but by dinner time, Drew was home and seemed OK, so they returned to Girls’ camp that evening. Drew’s older sister came home also, and she took off from work to stay with Drew in case he started vomiting again. That night, he slept on the couch in the basement because it was cooler than the upstairs. I slept on the floor in the basement next to the couch so that I could be there to help him if he had any vomiting, but he slept through the night without incident.

Friday, June 30th, 2017

7:30 AM: Seemed like a normal day, although Drew was really sleepy. We attributed it to the Zofran as we encouraged him to drink clear liquids. He was able to eat a cracker at one point, but no more vomiting. His sister stayed with him while I went to work. They watched Star Wars while Drew texted his friends. He was still a little dizzy when he stood up or changed positions too fast, which then caused a little nausea. Otherwise, all seemed well.

2:45 PM: Drew got up to use the restroom. His sister helped steady him because of the dizziness, and he spoke normally and had no problems in the restroom. However, as she helped him walk back to the couch, he started talking gibberish. The way his sister described it, he could understand what she said, but when he responded, his words and sentences made no sense (Expressive Aphasia). She helped him to the couch and encouraged him to try and drink some fluids, and as he tried to swallow, the 7-Up fell out of his mouth and down the front of his chest (Oral Motor Dyskinesia). He was scared and so was my daughter, who called me and I headed for home.

3:15 PM: I arrived home from work to find that Drew was now confused. He was unable to follow commands. His speech was slow and slurred and jumbled. I told his sister we needed to get him to the hospital quickly. While at St. Mark’s the previous day, they told us that if Drew were to be admitted, he would be transferred to Primary Children’s Hospital because he was under 18-years-old.  Drew could barely walk to the car, so we assisted him as quickly as we could and took off for Primary Children’s. At times, I was driving 85 to 90 miles per hour on both U-111 and U-201. Drew slumped against his sister in the back seat and slept the whole way there. His sister cursed the slower drivers and heavy traffic while willing the stoplights to turn green.

4:00 PM: Drew was barely conscious and could not stand as we pulled up to Primary Children’s Hospitlal. I ran into the Emergency Room and asked for a wheelchair. It took several minutes to track a wheelchair down, and then I helped the nurses lift Drew from the backseat of the car and into the wheelchair. As we checked him in, the only thing he could say was “I don’t know. I don’t know.” He did not know his name. He could not follow commands or answer questions.

4:15 PM: It took three of us to lift him our of the wheelchair and up onto the gurney. He was fully unconscious and neurologically posturing. The nurses called a “Code Sepsis” over the intercom, and the room began to fill with many different people in a variety of colored scrubs and lab coats.  The situation was urgent.

I called his mother at Girls’ Camp and told her to come immediately to Primary Children’s Hospital. Drew had slipped into a coma in less than 90 minutes.

© Copyright 2017 Jeff, All rights Reserved. Written For: Jeffrey Olsen