Capnocytophaga canimorsus, an uncommon and fatal bacteria that is present in dog and cat saliva, was what Marie had contracted.
Her immune system went into overdrive due to the bacterium, resulting in large blood clots that stopped her limbs’ circulation.
According to Dr. Ajay Seth, the orthopedic surgeon who would later operate on Marie and save her life, “it was just rapidly progressing where her hands and feet were turning black.”
It was a catastrophic scenario. Upon waking from a 10-day coma, Marie discovered that her limbs had been severed.
At first, the doctors intended to amputate all four limbs at the torso, which would have significantly reduced Marie’s future range of motion.
Dr. Seth, however, was not giving up. In an effort to preserve as many of her limbs as possible, he removed more than 40 blood clots in over seven hours so that she may eventually have prosthesis.
