A WOMAN was left with a gaping hole in her head, exposing her brain to infection for months after a freak accident.
Alina Silvanaviciute, 44, started suffering pain when an old head wound became infected in November 2023.
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The support worker from Stowmarket, Suffolk, went to her GP and was given antibiotics.
But she ended up needing part of her skull removed in an operation at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, Cambridge, in March 2024.
Alina claims that Ipswich Hospital neglected her by postponing a scan until it was too late, and the only option was for the bone to be removed.
“If they took this seriously, it would have been done earlier, but now they have taken the skull out of the head,” she said.
“The wound opened at the beginning of November, and they only started to do something two months ago when they said I had to wait for an operation.
I used to be a very pretty lady and now I look really terrible
Alina Silvanaviciute
“I was begging for a scan because I knew something was wrong. It’s plain neglect.”
“They said that is normal, and that is how it is.
“That it just works like this because they have too many patients and that it is not their fault.
“In other words, ‘it is what it is and deal with it because nobody cares’.”
FREAK ACCIDENT
The carer first injured her head in a freak accident when she fell down a set of cement stairs in the US 10 years ago.
She said: “I fell down slippery cement stairs.
“It was night-time, and I couldn’t see where to put my feet, so I fell down nine cement steps and split open my head.
“My friend called the ambulance. I woke up after the surgery and had stitches.”
The wound opened in November 2023 and in March, doctors told Alina that the bone in her skull known as the “bone flap” had become infected and needed to be removed.
The operation removed part of her skull, leaving her brain exposed and extremely vulnerable to damage until she was given a prosthetic skull.
“The brain is unprotected, and I cannot work,” she said before adding, “Nobody cares at all.”
Alina is utterly distraught about her appearance and the whole experience, which she says took far too long and was extremely unpleasant.
“I am a carer so I know what it means to care for someone. I didn’t deserve it,” she said, referring to the treatment she received from the NHS.
“I used to be a very pretty lady and now I look really terrible,” said, before adding, “nobody cares at all.”
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BABY MISSES ‘PRETTY’ MUMMY
Alina has been promised a prosthetic head bone in six months’ time but says that she doesn’t know what she will do in the meantime.
“In three months, I will have a prosthetic bone in my head because they took one out,” she said.
“Now I cannot work because they are giving me very strong antibiotics.
“My mental health is over the roof because I have an autistic baby.
“The baby was crying for two days and two nights because he couldn’t come next to me. He was saying, ‘Where is pretty mummy?’
“I keep crying in the hospital, and when I see my baby, he starts to cry and says he still loves me. It just breaks my heart. “
“I always worked, even until I was seven months pregnant.
“I called from the hospital saying that I can’t work, and then at the end, I am feeling and treated like sh*t.”
Alina said she now “gets scared” of herself when she sees herself in the mirror.
“If I could chat to someone, I would say, please pay attention when people send complaints because it’s not a joke,” she said.
Dr Martin Mansfield, deputy Chief Medical Officer at East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Colchester and Ipswich hospitals, said: “We were very sorry to hear about the concerns raised by Ms Silvanaviciute.
“We would urge her to contact our dedicated Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) team so we can discuss her care and treatment at Ipswich Hospital with her directly.
“We are very keen to listen and to support Ms Silvanaviciute further.”
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A Cambridge University Hospital spokesperson said: “Although we cannot discuss individual cases, this patient has been advised to speak to our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS), which will listen carefully to her concerns, investigate them thoroughly, and then report back to her as soon as possible.
“This is because patient care and satisfaction with our services are our absolutely top priorities.”
What are the symptoms of a bone infection?
BONE infections are rare and painful
The condition, also called osteomyelitis, can cause permanent damage if not treated.
Infections can begin the note itself after an injury exposes the bone to germs.
They can also reach the bone through the bloodstream or spread from nearby tissue.
Symptoms
Osteomyelitis usually causes severe pain, most often affecting the legs, but it may affect other body parts.
Other symptoms of osteomyelitis can include:
- Swelling of the affected area
- A feeling of warmth on the affected area
- Redness of the skin in the affected area, which may be harder to see on black or brown skin
- A limp (more common in children)
- A high temperature
Treatment
Osteomyelitis is treated with antibiotics. You may need treatment in hospital, or you might be able to take antibiotics at home.
In some cases, surgery will be required to remove the infected bone.
Source: NHS