Child's E. coli Death in Vancouver Could Help Quicken Public Outbreak Response
Bonnie and Anthony Wilson of Vancouver, Washington, have bravely shared the story of their 4-year-old son's E. coli death in the hopes of sparing anyone else the same tragedy.
Ronan Allen "Ro-Ro" Wilson was an exhuberant, healthy boy who had overcome serious health challenges in his first few years of life only to fall victim to an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 at a family daycare. Ronan and others were sickened before the faciility was shut down. In all, 13 people became infected.
Clark County Health Officer Dr. Alan Melnick told the Portland Oregonian newspaper that he is certain the outbreak spread inside the daycare from fecal-oral transmission during person to person contact.
He said he and his team made the right decisions while investigating the outbreak, but he expects to have more discussions with colleagues about whether the state of Washington should retool protocols to be more aggressive in responding to E. coli outbreaks. Ronan's death occurred a mere 10 days after his mother first took him to see a pediatrician on March 29.
According to the story written by reporter Katy Muldoon, here is the sequence of events:
- Despite Mrs. Wilson telling the doctor that a child at Ronan's daycare had been hospitalized with an infection of E. coli O157:H7, the physician said Ronan's symptoms didn't fit that diagnosis and sent him home.
- At home, the boy's condition appeared to improve the next day, but by evening he felt sick again. When his health worsened on April 1, he went to the clinic and then to the hospital, where he became violently ill. His diarrhea and vomit turned bloody and his stomach became distended.
- Ronan's infection spread fast. By April 4, the infection had moved beyond his colon and kidneys to his brain, damaging his thalmus and causing swelling. Ronan was rendered unconscious and he was breathing with a respirator. The brain infection worsened.
- On the evening of April 8, Ronan died. Friends and family -- including 7-year-old brother Gavin -- had been able to say their good-byes.
One week after Ronan's funeral, the Wilsons told their story:
"They want others to know the loving, curious, ambitious child they lost and to learn from their experience. They don't want another family to ever endure what they did.''
