Penelope was rushed to hospital when her parents spotted a strange mark on her neck and leg and used a simple trick to check if it was a symptom of meningitis
Penelope Vidal-Walsh faced a triple amputation after contracting meningitis
Penelope Vidal-Walsh and her parents have endured a harrowing few months following a shocking discovery about a rash.
In what is every parent’s worst fear, the Southport family realised that what seemed to be a sickness bug was actually something far more serious when they spotted some marks on Penelope’s neck and leg. Their quick thinking and awareness of one simple trick may have saved their daughter’s life.
The experience has been terrifying for both 10-year-old Penelope and her parents, Ricardo and Elizabeth, who are now dedicated to raising awareness of meningitis and the simple trick that alerted them to get Penelope to hospital.
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One evening, Penelope told her parents she felt ill shortly before going to bed. Despite waking up in the night feeling sick, her father ran her a bath and checked that everything seemed normal.
Convinced there was nothing noticeably worrying, he sent Penelope back to bed, as reported by The Liverpool ECHO.
While Penelope woke up as usual and had her breakfast, she started to feel sick again just before 9am. Worried, Ricardo checked her over for anything unusual, when he noticed a small purple mark on Penelope’s neck.
The young girl’s mother also began to examine her, when the pair found another purple mark near her knee.
Unsure whether the peculiar mark was a bruise or a rash, the couple employed a technique known as the “glass test”. The glass test is utilised to determine if a rash is minor or a more ominous indication of a severe infection.
The procedure involves pressing a glass against the skin to see if the rash vanishes under pressure. If the rash remains visible through the glass despite the pressure, it could be a symptom of meningitis.
Disturbed when the rash didn’t fade under the glass, Penelope’s parents swiftly took her to hospital. She was quickly moved to an intensive care unit in another hospital after being diagnosed with meningitis.
Regrettably, Penelope had to undergo a triple amputation during her lengthy battle with the disease. “During this time she beat the meningococcal disease and also a very rare fungal infection which caused severe complications,” Ricardo told the ECHO.
“As part of her treatment Penelope underwent a triple amputation surgery, which resulted in her losing her lower limbs and her right arm. She is currently undergoing skin grafting surgery as part of her rehabilitation and recovery. She has made huge progress and improvement and is even using a wheelchair and building up her core strength as well as the strength in her left arm.”
While Penelope remains in the critical care unit and awaits further skin grafts, her family are hopeful that if everything proceeds as planned, the young girl could potentially be discharged as early as October.
Eagerly anticipating their daughter’s recovery and return home, Ricardo and Elizabeth have launched a GoFundMe campaign to gather funds that will provide the clever pupil with the “best possible chance of living an independent life.
“We want to give her the best quality life and opportunities to fulfil any of her dreams and hopes that she had before this occurred.”
Ricardo added: “We want her to be able to not let this deter her from being the most energetic, fun, lively girl that she always has been. She remains determined and motivated to keep building her strength. The strength and resilience she shows us every day is just incredible and we are just so proud of her.”
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