The presence of excruciating pain without any obvious cause is a sign of necrotising fasciitis. Medical practitioners must look for any other symptoms that indicate the condition, ensuring they make a prompt diagnosis.
An early diagnosis is essential with necrotising fasciitis as it can quickly result in sepsis, septic shock and organ failure.
Pain disproportionate to injury
The first symptom of necrotising fasciitis is pain within one area of the body, inside the tissues and skin.
The affected individual will find this pain to be severe. However, it will also be confusing as there will be no obvious cause. Either there will be some form of injury, but the pain is totally disproportionate to the wound. Or there is no apparent injury and the pain is unexplained.
What causes this pain?
The pain is being caused by the tissues dying. Medically this is called tissue necrosis. The necrosis process occurs because bacteria have made their way into the tissue and begun to multiply. The bacteria release a toxin while they reproduce, and this damages the surrounding tissue and blood vessels.
Because of this damage, the blood vessels will not be able to function properly, leaving the area deficient in blood and oxygen. There will also be inflammation and clotting. All of this will damage the nerves, vessels and tissue further, until eventually it becomes gangrenous and dies.
The progression of tissue death will be exquisitely painful. There will also be tenderness and possibly sensory loss.
What other symptoms will there be?
Along with chronic pain with no obvious cause, the patient will also have:
- Fever
- Skin above the site of pain that is red and hot to touch
- Swelling at the site of pain
As the condition progresses, the patient will feel increasingly unwell and skin changes will develop. The skin may change in colour, turning red and then purple/black. Blisters can also appear, along with an open wound.
I think I might have necrotising fasciitis
If you think you might have necrotising fasciitis, you need to seek immediate medical help. Necrotising fasciitis is a fast moving infection and emergency surgery is required to remove the affected tissue.
In hospital, doctors should assess your symptoms and suspect a soft tissue infection. Various tests should be performed to confirm a diagnosis. Most importantly a surgical exploration should be carried out.
If medical practitioners fail to diagnose and treat necrotising fasciitis quickly, the standard of care will be unacceptable.
Legal advice
If you have suffered because doctors did not treat your necrotising fasciitis in time, contact us to discuss pursuing a medical negligence claim.
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