Infections Causing Sepsis Can Be Caused by Many Things, Even a Lick from Your Dog

Many of us have furry friends at home. They show love by licking us at times. It’s probably never crossed your mind that your pup’s expression of love could lead to a life-threatening medical condition. Unfortunately, that appears to be what happened to a man in Wisconsin. An innocent lick from his dog ultimately led to the loss of some of his limbs, and almost his life.

Like many of us, Greg Manteufel of Wisconsin had a dog who gave him lots of affection. One day he began feeling bad with flu-like symptoms, but in just a few short hours he was on his way to the emergency room with dangerously low blood pressure and strange bruising on his body. He had contracted a serious infection from Capnocytophaga canimorsus, a bacterium commonly present in dog saliva. The infection quickly elevated to the condition of sepsis within his body. When someone presents to a hospital with sepsis, medical decisions need to be made fast. There are very specific protocols on how to treat this infectious process. It needs to be done in a proper manner or catastrophic injuries can occur. In the case of Greg Manteufel, doctors ended up amputating both of his legs and portions of his hands and nose. His life was saved, but he has been catastrophically injured.

Capnocytophaga canimorsus developing into sepsis a rarity

Doctors suspect that it was bacteria from his dog’s mouth which led to an infection, which then developed into sepsis. Even a small wound that is not fully healed can be an entrance point for bacteria. However, Manteufel was not bitten or scratched by his dog. Doctors suspect the bacteria was transmitted from his dog’ lick and that Manteufel touched his eye or mouth, which initiated the infection.

Healthy dogs and cats carry the bacterial pathogen referred to as Capnocytophaga canimorsus. However, it is a very rare occurrence for this pathogen from dog saliva to develop into a septic infection in a human. Since the 1970s, fewer than 1,000 cases of these infections from non-bite wounds have been recorded in North America.

Our $13.75 million verdict against Aiken Regional Medical Centers in sepsis case

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition, and failure to diagnose it and treat it quickly can put patients at risk of losing their limbs, or of dying. Firm partner attorney Chad McGowan won a $13.75 million verdict against Aiken Regional Medical Centers in South Carolina after doctors in the facility failed to treat a sepsis patient in a prompt manner. Their failure resulted in the victim becoming a triple amputee.

Chad McGowan has another multiple-amputation sepsis case scheduled to be tried in November 2018.

At McGowan, Hood, Felder & Phillips, LLC, we are proud of the work we do on behalf of medical negligence victims. If you or a loved one has sustained an injury due to the failure of medical professionals to provide an appropriate standard of care, we can help. Attorney Chad McGowan has been successful in prosecution of amputation injuries caused by sepsis. He has developed a special interest in these cases and has accumulated vast knowledge on the types of actions or inactions of medical personnel, which can contribute to the devastating injury of a multiple amputation. If you have a sepsis injury case, Chad is available for consultation. To arrange a free consultation, call us today at 803-327-7800 or make a request through our contact form.