4-year-old hospitalized with E. coli after swimming in Virgin River

ST. GEORGE — When Kate Garner took her family to the Virgin River on June 12, she had the same talk she'd always had with her kids regarding outdoor bodies of water.

"I've shown them what the algae looks like so that they don't touch it," she said. "As soon as we're done swimming, we wash our hands, and I've told them not to drink the water."

The family of six had often gone to this particular spot due to it being shaded by trees and having a rope swing. Garner recalled never having experienced any issues before but noticed that her 4-year-old son's head went under the water a couple of times. She said she reminded him to "keep his mouth closed," adding that they didn't see any algae blooms where they were playing.

So, when her 4-year-old son (who she has asked not to be named) started feeling sick the following day, she didn't think much of it at first.

"On Sunday, he came down with a fever, then the next day he was fine and we even went on a hike," she recalled. "On Tuesday night, he had bloody diarrhea."

Garner and her husband took their son to the emergency room and were told that he had E. coli, a bacterial illness caused by fecal matter in water from humans and other warm-blooded animals. E. coli does not produce algae blooms.

"The doctor said (our son) couldn't have an antibiotic because it can release more toxins and be really bad on his kidneys and liver," she said. "He said it would run its course, and we were sent home with paperwork on what HUS was, and we didn't think it was a big deal."

Hemolytic uremic syndrome is a severe complication, often caused by an infection with Shiga toxin-producing E. coli. HUS is also rare, affecting approximately 8 in 100,000 individuals per year, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Garner said that when her son's condition didn't improve, she began to read through the paperwork and got scared.

"It said that a warning sign of HUS is that they stopped urinating," she said. "I was thinking about it, and I'm like, 'Oh, my gosh! I don't think he has peed since we were in the ER on Wednesday.'"

For the next several hours, she and her husband filled their son with fluids and noticed that he wasn't urinating. They took him to the ER the next morning and were immediately admitted, and soon Garner found herself being flown to Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City so he could receive dialysis due to kidney failure, as well as blood transfusions.

"It was the craziest thing to see him go from just a regular kid to being so sick," she said.

Faith and medicine

Even after three blood transfusions, Garner's son wasn't improving and was in complete kidney failure.

"The doctors told us that he had hit the point where it was life-threatening because he was having fevers and they were afraid that the infection had gotten into the blood and possibly brain," she said. "That night was probably the worst, but our family and friends and our local church all fasted for him so he could get better."

That night, the 4-year-old was doing well enough and had stabilized to the point that he was able to leave the ICU and start improving.

"His blood platelet numbers started to go up; his hemoglobin started to stabilize. His white blood cells — everything started healing itself," Garner said. "To be able to come back from that is incredible.

"Even though it's been so scary, it's also such a cool story about medicine and the power of faith," she added. "All of the beautiful nurses and doctors that have helped us along the way, taking care of him."

Garner said that even though she thought she had all her bases covered by telling her kids the dangers of toxic algae, she wasn't aware of the unseen danger of E. coli that was also present. She also said that she wants parents to be aware of what can happen, especially during the hot summer months.

"The doctor said that because of the drought, there is less water moving and it's hot, so kids are playing in the water, making more kids susceptible," she said. "It's unfortunate because this weather is what makes you want to go out and swim, but it's the very thing that makes the body of water more dangerous."

David Heaton from the Southwest Utah Public Health Department told KSL that while these instances are rare, keeping your head above water and not ingesting it is the best way to prevent becoming infected.

Garner is still at the hospital with her son, waiting for his blood pressure to level out, but says that they will be returning home to St. George soon, adding that there is a long road ahead for her son. Friends have set up a GoFundMe* to help with medical expenses.

*KSL.com does not assure that the money deposited into the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.

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