A Hiker Developed a Near-Fatal Infection With Flesh-Eating Bacteria. Here's How to Make Sure This Doesn’t Happen to You
Streptococcus is usually harmless. But if it gets into an open wound like a foot blister, as it did in this case, it can be deadly.
By Amanda MacMillan
July 24, 2017
Foot blisters are a common side effect of hiking, running, and breaking in a new pair of sandals. But one man’s blisters nearly ended his life after they became infected with so-called flesh-eating bacteria—which spread quickly through his body and attacked his internal organs.
Miami resident Wayne Atkins, 32, developed the annoying swellings while hiking in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, according to a news report from New Hampshire TV station WMUR.com. He didn’t pay much attention to them, though, until he’d returned to Florida and noticed that they were not healing—and that he’d begun to feel ill.
http://www.health.com/skin-conditions/hiker-blisters-flesh-eating-strep-bacteria
