A Dad who lost all of his limbs and lips after a flesh-eating bug attacked his body has said it was “the best year of his life”. Alex Lewis, now 38, believes he has “lived more” after having skin from his shoulder grafted onto his mouth and medical tattooing to reconstruct his lips.
Alex is the first person in the world to have the pioneering face surgery, which involved skin from his shoulder being grafted on his mouth.
Alex’s ordeal began in November 2013 when he first thought he just had the “man flu”, but just five weeks later he was in a coma as his major organs began to shut down.
He had contracted Strep A, which then terrifyingly developed into Strep A toxic shock syndrome, septicemia and necrotizing fasciitis – he had just a three percent chance of survival.
After more than six months in the hospital and 18 operations Alex, from Over Wallop in Hampshire, began the long road to recovery. He is the first person to ever have the procedure done.
Also Read: Flesh-eating virus disease spreading: Can kill a victim within few hours
Speaking to the Metro, he said: “I know it sounds mad but I do think that that year was the best year of my life. “I’ve lived more of a life in the past four years than I did in the previous 33, and it’s made me realise how much I love Lucy and Sam.”
Comparing his injuries to those like a bomb explosion Alex took a long time to come to terms with his new body. But now he says he “enjoys the fact I am the only person with this type of face”, according to the Mail.
Salisbury-based plastic surgeon Alexandra Crick was able to recreate Alex’s lips using skin from his shoulder – the only skin left available for grafts.
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