A mysterious illness caused a 29-year-old woman in Australia to collapse, prompting her to be rushed to intensive care where she later died.
According to Yahoo News Australia, Ashley Timbery was at her home in Nowra, located in the South Coast region of New South Wales, on February 15 when she suddenly passed out. Her brother immediately rushed her to Shoalhaven Hospital, where she stayed for 10 days before being transferred to St George Hospital in Sydney, the paper reported.
While in hospital in Sydney, doctors diagnosed Timbery with a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection. The Centers for Disease Control website explains that MRSA is a type of bacteria resistant to several antibiotics and is often spread by sharing personal items that have come into contact with infected skin, such as towels and razors. If left untreated, MRSA can lead to pneumonia or sepsis.
“It turned out she had a superbug that was attacking all of her organs and then developed pneumonia, which ultimately led to her death,” Timbery’s cousin Shantelle Locke told Yahoo News Australia. “She actually died on arrival at the hospital, so they immediately resuscitated her and intubated her. She also had sepsis all over her body.”
Locke added: “It seems the doctors thought she might have pneumonia a few weeks before she went to hospital, but she never received treatment and apparently didn’t know she had pneumonia.”
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Ashley Timbers.
Ashley Timbery/Instagram
In the weeks leading up to the tragic health scare, Timbery’s family told the outlet that she had shown no signs of serious illness other than experiencing body aches and a few ulcers. At first, her cousin did not perceive these symptoms as alarming. However, Locke found that the situation quickly deteriorated.
“While she was in the Shoalhaven they had to put a drainage tube in her right side of her lung because it had collapsed, so she needed an intervention to re-inflate it,” Locke explained. “Then, on arrival at St George’s Hospital, her left side partially collapsed.”
“The doctors showed us a CT scan of normal lungs, and then they showed hers — hers were riddled with holes,” Shantelle continued. “It was a result of her lungs becoming blocked due to pneumonia, and bacteria started to populate the cavities inside her lungs.”
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Eventually, doctors contacted Timbery’s family and delivered the heartbreaking news that she would not recover. On February 29, Timbery passed away. Locke revealed the news came as a deep shock to her and Timbery’s parents, who lovingly described their daughter as “hilarious” and “fun-loving”.
“We haven’t really had time to process it. It’s still a big shock to all of us,” said Locke, who also set up a GoFundMe page to help with funeral costs. “Honestly, we’re still trying to come to terms with it, while also trying to plan her funeral.”
“Her mom is obviously devastated, but I think she just wants to lay Ash to rest and let her find peace,” Shantelle continued. “She passed away last Thursday. It’s incredibly difficult for her. She’s very fragile and under a lot of stress.”
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Source: HIS Education