Mum shares heartbreaking photos of baby son fighting for life as a stark warning to other parents
HEARTBREAKING photos show three-week-old Alfie Gee fighting for life in hospital.
The tot was battling meningitis and sepsis, which can be fatal.
He fell ill not long after being born in Elgin, Scotland, in November 2021.
But his parents had no idea quite how serious his condition was until it was almost too late.
On the day his symptoms started, mum Caroline, 29, had what she described as a "normal" few hours visiting her sister and husband.
She spent time playing with her older son Arthur, three, and chatting to her relatives.
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It wasn't until they returned home that evening that she noticed something was wrong.
Caroline told the blog : "I put my older son to bed while my partner Chris cuddled Alfie downstairs.
"I then fed Alfie and went to bed myself – those newborn days are exhausting.
"Chris then went to work as he was on a night shift, so I breastfed Alfie in our bed and ended up falling asleep with him.
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"I woke up an hour or so later because of the heat of Alfie against my arm.
"He was really hot, hotter than either of my boys had ever felt."
Thinking he may have simply overheated, the primary school teacher quickly stripped him of his fleecy sleepsuit.
It was then that she noticed his ribs and neck "sucking in" with every breath.
In a panic, Caroline sent several videos to Chris - but neither spotted that his skin was also pale and mottled as by this point it was dark.
Alfie's health quickly worsened and he began breathing rapidly and making "grunting noises".
Unsure what to do, Caroline phoned 111 and was told her son needed to go to hospital.
"The call handler asked if grunting was normal for Alfie and I burst into tears," she said.
"I was in shock. I could tell by her tone it was serious.
"She said the ambulance was on its way and I needed to tell my husband to come home now to be there for Arthur."
The fear we felt while Alfie was fighting for his life was horrendous.
Caroline Gee
The paramedics arrived and they got Caroline to lie in the back of the ambulance with Alfie on her chest to try to regulate his temperature.
Once at A&E, the newborn underwent numerous blood tests, which revealed "his numbers were so bad they thought there must have been an error".
"Unfortunately, there was not and he was transferred to another hospital," Caroline said.
Doctors informed the family their little boy was suffering from sepsis, but they didn't yet know where the infection had come from.
All they knew was that he needed to be treated urgently.
"There were concerns he had a gastrointestinal issue due to his abdomen becoming so distended - you could actually see his veins through his stretched skin," Caroline said.
Alfie was airlifted from Aberdeen to Edinburgh while his parents made the three-and-a-half-hour journey by car.
Caroline added: "The fear we felt on that journey, being separated from Alfie while he was fighting for his life, was horrendous.
"That's a drive I never want any other parent to have to repeat."
LIFE-THREATENING INFECTION
They later learned Alfie had E.Coli meningitis caused by an infection that originated in his bladder.
He spent two weeks in hospital in Edinburgh, then another two weeks of daily check-ups and IVs closer to home.
Thankfully, he made a slow recovery.
But his mum and dad want to educate other parents on the symptoms of meningitis and sepsis so no other family has to endure the same pain.
According to the NHS, the most common symptoms of sepsis in babies and young children are:
- Difficulty breathing, breathlessness or breathing very fast
- Grunting noises
- Blue, grey, pale or blotchy skin, lips or tongue
- A rash that does not fade when pressed
- A weak, high-pitched cry
- Being more lethargic than usual or being difficult to wake
- Seizures or 'fits'
Many are the same for meningitis, but signs can also include:
- A tense or bulging soft spot (fontanelle on head)
- A high temperature above 38C
- Being very sleepy
- A headache
- Fast breathing, or difficulty breathing
- Extreme shivering
- Cold hands and feet
- Vomiting or refusing to feed
- Pain and/or irritability from muscle aches or severe limb/joint pain
- A stiff or rigid neck
- Dislike of light
- “Pin prick” rash or purple bruises anywhere on the body
- Blotchy skin, getting paler or turning blue on white skin, ashy or grey appearance on black and brown skin
Caroline, who last year shaved her head to for Ronald McDonald House Charities UK, said: "At no point did Alfie develop a rash from either the sepsis or the meningitis.
"Before he got sick, I thought meningitis always came with the rash everyone talks about. It doesn’t.
"I do remember my brother-in-law asking if it was normal for Alfie to sleep as long as he was because it was pushing four hours.
"It was the longest he had slept for but I wasn't worried. He woke and fed normally and we went home and continued with our day as normal.
"I, like many parents unfortunately, had limited knowledge about the signs of sepsis and meningitis.
"I knew about the stiff neck, light sensitivity and non-fading rash with meningitis, but the first two are so difficult to know for sure with young babies.
"Alfie did not have the typical rash so meningitis was not at the forefront of my mind."
She added: "I was aware of how serious and life-threatening sepsis was from watching programs like 999: What’s Your Emergency? and 24 Hours in A&E.
"Looking back at the videos with the knowledge I have now, Alfie was a classic sepsis case, but I wasn’t aware of that.
"Luckily, I acted quickly and the outcome was positive, but speed is absolutely essential, so understanding meningitis and sepsis and spotting the signs is crucial."
Vinnie Smith, CEO of the Meningitis Research Foundation, said: "Meningitis is feared, and with good reason. Time is of the essence.
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"With NHS emergency units under pressure, it’s vital that health professionals spot the signs of meningitis quickly.
"Sadly, we know of many families who have lost loved ones within hours."
What is sepsis?
SEPSIS is a life-threatening reaction to an infection.
It happens when your immune system overreacts to an infection and starts to damage your body's own tissues and organs.
You cannot catch sepsis from another person.
Sepsis is sometimes called septicaemia or blood poisoning.
The most common symptoms in babies and young children include:
- Blue, grey, pale or blotchy skin, lips or tongue – on brown or black skin, this may be easier to see on the palms of the hands or soles of the feet
- A rash that does not fade when you roll a glass over it, the same as meningitis
- Difficulty breathing (you may notice grunting noises or their stomach sucking under their rib cage), breathlessness or breathing very fast
- A weak, high-pitched cry that's not like their normal cry
- Not responding like they normally do, or not interested in feeding or normal activities
- Being sleepier than normal or difficult to wake
In adults and older children, the following can be signs of sepsis:
- Acting confused, slurred speech or not making sense
- Blue, grey, pale or blotchy skin, lips or tongue – on brown or black skin, this may be easier to see on the palms of the hands or soles of the feet
- A rash that does not fade when you roll a glass over it, the same as meningitis
- Difficulty breathing, breathlessness or breathing very fast
Sepsis can be especially hard to spot in:
- Babies and young children
- People with dementia
- People with a learning disability
- People who have difficulty communicating
According to the World Health Organization, around 11million die from sepsis every year - many of them children.
Source: NHS and the
