Logan King Looks on the Bright Side of Developing Bacterial Meningitis
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After surviving a near-fatal case of bacterial meningitis, 15-year-old Logan King has begun working towards regaining his ability to play soccer, reports iNews 880 AM, a Canadian radio station.
King fell ill on January 4 of this year with a headache, fever, vomiting and pain in his neck. Doctors soon diagnosed him with bacterial meningitis, and the resident of Alberta, Canada, was quickly put on life support.
Although King has no memories of the time he spent on life support, he recognizes that doctors had to work hard to keep him alive. "Wow," he told the source. "I went through a lot. They didn't know if I was going to pull through."
Now that King has overcome his illness, he still has a long way to go. He was an elite soccer player before he developed meningitis, but the disease forced him to relearn how to walk. King still has difficulties moving the extremities on the left side of his body, and he can barely run half a mile.
King is choosing to look on the bright side of his illness, however, telling the source that his experience has made him more compassionate. He now is working to get all ninth graders in Alberta to get a meningitis vaccine.
According to the National Meningitis Association, approximately 3,000 people in the United States develop bacterial meningitis every year, with roughly 10-12 percent of those patients dying from the disease. Symptoms from the disease can be generic, as they frequently resemble those of the stomach flu, so patients should take care to seek medical attention immediately if their condition worsens.
Those who have survived bacterial meningitis can contact the National Meningitis Association for information and support.
King fell ill on January 4 of this year with a headache, fever, vomiting and pain in his neck. Doctors soon diagnosed him with bacterial meningitis, and the resident of Alberta, Canada, was quickly put on life support.
Although King has no memories of the time he spent on life support, he recognizes that doctors had to work hard to keep him alive. "Wow," he told the source. "I went through a lot. They didn't know if I was going to pull through."
Now that King has overcome his illness, he still has a long way to go. He was an elite soccer player before he developed meningitis, but the disease forced him to relearn how to walk. King still has difficulties moving the extremities on the left side of his body, and he can barely run half a mile.
King is choosing to look on the bright side of his illness, however, telling the source that his experience has made him more compassionate. He now is working to get all ninth graders in Alberta to get a meningitis vaccine.
According to the National Meningitis Association, approximately 3,000 people in the United States develop bacterial meningitis every year, with roughly 10-12 percent of those patients dying from the disease. Symptoms from the disease can be generic, as they frequently resemble those of the stomach flu, so patients should take care to seek medical attention immediately if their condition worsens.
Those who have survived bacterial meningitis can contact the National Meningitis Association for information and support.
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