What to know about flesh-eating bacteria
Flesh-eating bacteria infections may look similar to other diseases, which can make diagnosis difficult. Here’s how to spot it before it’s too late.
Carolyn Fleming of Ellenton, Florida, may have been the latest person to die of a flesh-eating bacteria infection, which she contracted infection swimming off the coast of Anna Maria Island in Florida, her family says.
Necrotizing fasciitis is a skin infection caused by rare bacteria that enters the body through a break in the skin. From this opening, the bacteria aggressively attacks muscles and other organs resulting in rapid destruction of the tissues. Necrotizing fasciitis can quickly develop soon after. If not treated promptly with antibiotics, the infection can become fatal. The resulting illness is rarely life-threatening and symptoms occur within 24 hours and last about three days.