My cellulitis scare: how a serious bacterial infection was sparked by one wrong step on a Hong Kong beach
- Martin Williams was playing frisbee with his son on Cheung Sha beach when he felt a prick to the bottom of his left foot, from which he caught cellulitis
- As his leg doubled in size and turned purple, and he heard his doctor mention flesh-eating disease, his worries grew. But after six days he was able to walk out
A recent run-in with something rather sharp and likely putrid triggered a short staycation in a hospital near my Hong Kong home on Cheung Chau island. I had developed cellulitis.
No, not cellulite – the condition that causes lumpy, dimpled flesh on the thighs, hips, buttocks and stomach (that many people have) – but a bacterial infection deep in the inner layers of the skin.
It started simply enough, as I played frisbee with my son in the shallow, sandy waters at Cheung Sha beach on Lantau Island. I felt a quick pricking in the bottom of my left foot when treading on the sand. Briefly, I wondered if it was a marine creature, but felt nothing more: no pain indicating venom from a stone fish, for instance.
Arriving home on Cheung Chau that evening, I was feeling unwell, but thought it must be dehydration. Drinking water and sports drinks was little help. The next day, I had a minor fever. Though I slept well, I awoke sweating, then had a spell of intense shivering, and tremors.
Wondering if dehydration had led to a sinus infection, to which I’m prone, I saw a doctor. He found nothing wrong – though he was surprised my temperature was high.
