… As ‘stomach acid leaks’
Nottingham Forest said Taiwo Awoniyi is recovering well, but a top doctor has explained how the suspected cause of the star’s suffering could have had a 50% chance of death.
The Nigerian striker suffered a freak injury during Forest’s controversial 2-2 draw against Leicester City, colliding stomach-first into a goal post when sliding for the ball. Both the Daily Mail and Sky Sports reported that he suffered a ruptured intestine in the incident.
Despite signally he could continue, Awoniyi was quickly substituted and later placed in an induced coma so he could undergo surgery. His Premier League club says the 27-year-old is “recovering well so far following urgent surgery on a serious abdominal injury”.
But reports have since emerged that his injury could have been fatal if not treated sooner, and now Dr. Gareth Nye of the University of Salford has revealed that the reported threat to his life wasn’t understated.
“Reports suggest he has suffered a ruptured intestine also known as gastrointestinal perforation caused by the collision with the goal post during the game,” Dr. Nye said.
“One of the more serious complications from this condition is sepsis and GI perforation is always an emergency situation.
“In essence you have undigested food, stomach acid, enzymes designed to breakdown tissue and bacteria from inside your intestines, suddenly having free reign around your abdominal pelvic region, which has huge consequences to the patient.”
He added: “Because of this, risk of death can be as high as 50%.”
Dr. Nye then explained the basics of the operation, described in reports as ‘complex’.
“Patients typically have emergency surgery to remove damaged tissue, repair the hole and clean the region,” he said.
“They will then be placed on what’s called bowel rest, which means nil by mouth essentially and given strong antibiotics to lower infection risk.
“In some cases patients may have a colostomy or ileostomy which allows the contents of your intestines to empty into a bag, through a stoma, a hole created in your abdomen.
“This may be temporary allowing healing to occur uninterrupted which would then require a second surgery to reattach the intestines. In other cases, the surgery is permanent.
“He had surgery on Monday night and remains in hospital, with the rest of the procedure set to be completed on Wednesday which suggests he has had a multistage surgery to protect the intestines described above.”