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REPORT: 11-Year-Old Boy Suffers Ankle Injury, Dies From Flesh-Eating Bacteria

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Emily Cope Contributor
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An 11-year-old boy in Winter Park, Florida, reportedly died from a flesh-eating bacteria after injuring his ankle on a treadmill.

Jesse Brown, 11, was a healthy and active child who played competitively in BMX and motocross racing, his cousin, Megan Brown, told WESH 2 News. After Jesse injured his ankle on a treadmill and developed a sprain and possibly a minor cut, his family did not think much of it due to his prior good health, according to the outlet.

“A couple of days later, they went to the ER in the morning because he woke up, and his whole leg was covered in splotchy, purply red, almost bruising. And his arms and legs were very cold, but his body was very, very hot,” Brown told the outlet.

Doctors told the family Jesse’s cut had developed a group A strep bacteria, WESH reported.

University of Maryland Medical Center infectious diseases expert Dr. Alan Cross told the outlet group A can develop among children and adults with scrapes and wounds of various sizes. If not identified quickly enough, the bacteria can allegedly lead to secondary infections.

“If group A strep forms there, it can cause this very rapid infection, and the reason for that is that it makes a toxin,” Cross said, according to WESH.

Jesse wore a boot on his ankle for the injury, so his family didn’t see the infection that led to the flesh-eating bacteria quickly enough, the outlet reported.

“They had to bring him back [to the hospital] a couple of times because his heart was doing crazy things. His organs were starting to shut down and they had to intubate him,” Brown added, according to WESH.

The infection reportedly festered in Jesse’s ankle before causing his brain to swell, ultimately resulting in his death, according to WESH.

Dr. Todd Husty, the Seminole County medical director, told the outlet group A strep cases are typically very rare. Until 2022, there were reportedly between 750 and 1,000 cases across the entire country. Husty said the number of cases among children increased to between 1,000 and 1,500 cases in 2022, according to WESH. (RELATED: Flesh-Eating Bacteria Sickness Surges In Florida Since Hurricane Ian)

“It’s a horrible case but it is going to increase our awareness,” Husty said. “If there are symptoms greater than what you would expect with a sprained ankle, greater than what you would expect with a little wound or something, then yeah, we probably got to get it checked out, especially if that symptom includes a fever.”

Brown told WESH Jesse was his parents’ miracle baby, born after they allegedly struggled with infertility for 10 years.

“I just kept thinking of Bebe, his mom, because she’s my favorite, and my heart really broke for her,” Brown told the outlet.

Jesse’s school, Lakemont Elementary, has set up a memorial fund in his name.