| Pontotoc mother wins battle with WEST NILE VIRUS
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(Stacie King spraying her 5-year-old daughter Savannah.)
By SANDRA PRIEST
Special to the Progress
It�s hard to believe that a tiny insect could cause a grown woman so much trouble, but for Stacie King just one pesky little mosquito almost cost her her life.
It all began early on a September morning when Stacie woke up with the worst headache and backache she had ever experienced. �I wasn�t able to go to church that day,� she says as she remembers the unexpected turn of events last fall. Her symptoms soon included dizziness, nausea, and weakness. �Everyday I just got worse,� she recalls with a faraway look in her eyes.
When her unusual symptoms didn�t improve she finally decided it was time to see a doctor. Stacie�s husband Derrick says, �Now, if I start to get a sniffle I run to the doctor, but Stacie never goes.� He knew his wife was really sick�and worried.
She made an appointment with Dr. Joseph Montgomery. Because Stacie�s symptoms were uncommon, and the routine tests in the office didn�t give any real clues to help in making a diagnosis, Dr. Joseph consulted with his older brother Dr. Steve Montgomery. Dr. Steve was puzzled as well by the mysterious symptoms that by now included a high fever. Trying to get to the root cause of the strange illness they decided to order a CT scan, as well as blood tests for a long list of diseases�a lot of which were fatal. �It�s a scary feeling when the doctor puts you in the hospital and doesn�t know what is wrong with you,� Stacie vividly remembers.
After the CT scan came back normal a spinal tap was ordered to check for meningitis, an inflammation of the membrane around the brain and spinal cord. This test came back positive. One piece of the puzzling illness had fallen into place, but Dr. Steve, who was the one on call that weekend, didn�t think that was the whole puzzle. Stacie explains, �He was anxious to see what the blood work that had been sent off to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota showed.�
Puzzle solved
After the results from the Mayo Clinic came in, the puzzle of the mysterious illness was finally solved. Derrick remembers how scared he and Stacie were when they first heard the diagnosis. �When he (Dr. Steve) walked into the room and said �Well, I know now what you�ve had�, we just held our breath. When he said it was West Nile Meningitis I thought that was a death sentence, but he said �But you�re going to be fine�.�
Dr. Steve explained that the disease is extremely rare and that it would take quite some time for Stacie to fully recover. In all his years of practicing medicine, this was his first patient with West Nile Virus. �He said he was just as shocked as we were,� Stacie recalls. Her case was the first and only instance of West Nile Virus reported in Pontotoc County in 2007.
As a mother of five, Stacie can�t imagine a child going through an ordeal like hers. �I think parents should be real cautious and should be real aware. You think it would never happen to you.�
The King family is thankful that Stacie is on the road to recovery. Although she still tires easily she is doing well. Stacie and Derrick are especially thankful for family and friends who helped them through those difficult weeks while she was in the hospital and recuperating afterwards. �If it had not been for family and friends we would have been in a tight�a real tight,� Derrick says gratefully. Stacie adds with a smile, �The good Lord works it all out. He always has for us.�
It all began early on a September morning when Stacie woke up with the worst headache and backache she had ever experienced. �I wasn�t able to go to church that day,� she says as she remembers the unexpected turn of events last fall. Her symptoms soon included dizziness, nausea, and weakness. �Everyday I just got worse,� she recalls with a faraway look in her eyes.
When her unusual symptoms didn�t improve she finally decided it was time to see a doctor. Stacie�s husband Derrick says, �Now, if I start to get a sniffle I run to the doctor, but Stacie never goes.� He knew his wife was really sick�and worried.
She made an appointment with Dr. Joseph Montgomery. Because Stacie�s symptoms were uncommon, and the routine tests in the office didn�t give any real clues to help in making a diagnosis, Dr. Joseph consulted with his older brother Dr. Steve Montgomery. Dr. Steve was puzzled as well by the mysterious symptoms that by now included a high fever. Trying to get to the root cause of the strange illness they decided to order a CT scan, as well as blood tests for a long list of diseases�a lot of which were fatal. �It�s a scary feeling when the doctor puts you in the hospital and doesn�t know what is wrong with you,� Stacie vividly remembers.
After the CT scan came back normal a spinal tap was ordered to check for meningitis, an inflammation of the membrane around the brain and spinal cord. This test came back positive. One piece of the puzzling illness had fallen into place, but Dr. Steve, who was the one on call that weekend, didn�t think that was the whole puzzle. Stacie explains, �He was anxious to see what the blood work that had been sent off to the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota showed.�
Puzzle solved
After the results from the Mayo Clinic came in, the puzzle of the mysterious illness was finally solved. Derrick remembers how scared he and Stacie were when they first heard the diagnosis. �When he (Dr. Steve) walked into the room and said �Well, I know now what you�ve had�, we just held our breath. When he said it was West Nile Meningitis I thought that was a death sentence, but he said �But you�re going to be fine�.�
Dr. Steve explained that the disease is extremely rare and that it would take quite some time for Stacie to fully recover. In all his years of practicing medicine, this was his first patient with West Nile Virus. �He said he was just as shocked as we were,� Stacie recalls. Her case was the first and only instance of West Nile Virus reported in Pontotoc County in 2007.
As a mother of five, Stacie can�t imagine a child going through an ordeal like hers. �I think parents should be real cautious and should be real aware. You think it would never happen to you.�
The King family is thankful that Stacie is on the road to recovery. Although she still tires easily she is doing well. Stacie and Derrick are especially thankful for family and friends who helped them through those difficult weeks while she was in the hospital and recuperating afterwards. �If it had not been for family and friends we would have been in a tight�a real tight,� Derrick says gratefully. Stacie adds with a smile, �The good Lord works it all out. He always has for us.�
Appeared originally in the Pontotoc Progress, 7/1/2008, section C , page 1
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