A man was left paralysed face down after contracting a rare auto-immune disease while on his vacation in Bali.
23-year-old Tom Pegg, who is a real-estate agent originally from Cheshire, developed an upset stomach, a common condition for travellers returning from Bali, upon returning to his home in Dubai in June.
His symptoms worsened over the next five days and his eye started to swell, followed by his throat, as reported by the Independent. He went to the hospital where doctors suspected an allergic reaction and gave him an anti-histamine shot. But, two days later, Pegg was rushed to the emergency room again by his best friend as both his eyes swelled shut and he struggled to breath and talk.
At the Al Qaassimi Hospital, the young man was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre, a rare disease that makes the body attack itself and shut down.
“It has been really scary, I had never heard of the disease in my life. My brother is a very charismatic, charming, laid-back guy. He’s gone from being a fit, healthy, fun-loving guy to being frail – he looks like a little boy. It’s such a horrendous disease that happens so quickly and out of the blue. It’s put my brother’s life on hold,” Hollie Pegg, his 28-year-old sister said.
She also claimed that her brother has a serious case of the disorder and is paralysed from the face down. He is learning to walk again, but it is not known how long that will take.
Pegg was put in an induced coma for five days and his 56-year-old father Adam Pegg and sister flew to be by his side. His mother, Julia Royle, couldn’t come as she is battling stage three breast cancer herself, according to Independent.
His family has raised 100,000 euros to fly him back home so that he can be treated at the University of North Staffordshire Hospital. “Having Tom home is a great distraction for my mum, she is so relieved and is seeing him every day,” his sister said.
So far, Pegg has been in the hospital for around nine weeks and is learning to walk and talk again. Nobody knows how long his road to recovery is.
He also reacted positively to plasma exchange treatment - a procedure that sees blood filtered to remove harmful antibodies attacking the nerves – and his limbs are working again. He has also regained the use of his eyes after temporarily losing his sight.
“He’s managing to get out of bed for short periods of time but he’s still very weak and on oxygen. He has a tracheotomy in his throat so he is unable to swallow and speak, and he can’t breathe through his mouth or nose,” his sister added.
“He is fully aware of what’s going on and he still has his sense of humour – he can now see so can type on his phone to talk to his friends but he can’t move his face. We have no idea how long this is going to take so we are taking baby steps. He is the strongest, most determined person I have ever met,” she quoted further.
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