A 13-year-old girl from South Lanarkshire is battling for her life in Spain after a tragic medical emergency during a family holiday. Charlotte Meek was rushed to the hospital after suffering from severe coughing fits and blood. The family has been warned it could be weeks before she can be transferred home.
A 13-year-old girl from South Lanarkshire is fighting for her life in Spain after her lungs filled with blood during a family holiday. Charlotte Meek, from Larkhall, traveled to Alicante with her mother, Wendy, and father, Stephen, for the Kings' Day parade on January 5. Tragedy struck on January 6 when Charlotte became unwell and was rushed to hospital, where she remains in the ICU on a ventilator.
The family has been warned it could be weeks before they can even begin discussing transferring her home. Charlotte has a rare genetic condition called SWAN (Syndrome with no name), which causes underlying health issues and makes it difficult for doctors to provide a diagnosis. Sadly, the family lost Charlotte's older brother Justin in similar circumstances while on a family holiday to Florida in 2014. Her father described the situation as a 'mirror image' of their current ordeal. Speaking to the Record, Stephen recalled the terrifying incident. He said, 'We had three days enjoying a nice wee break, then in the early hours of Monday morning Charlotte began to have coughing fits quite consistently then began coughing up blood, which is never good. By 5.30am she was being violently sick with a lot of blood. Even though Charlotte has underlying health conditions, she had been well recently, so we were worried. We phoned an ambulance on Monday morning, and she was rushed to a hospital in Alicante. Her mum travelled with her in the ambulance, and I followed in the car.''By the time I got there, she was already getting put on a ventilator, and her oxygen levels were worryingly low. This was around 7 am, and by 11 am, we were told she was critically ill, and she was transferred to another hospital in Alicante where she has been for the last week. She has had a slight improvement, but she is still very poorly, relying on the ventilator to breathe and fully sedated. ' The family has moved into an apartment across the road from the hospital so they can stay by Charlotte's bedside. Stephen continued, 'They have told us to prepare to spend weeks here while Charlotte recovers; they still don't know what the cause of the bleeding is. If she continues to recover, there will be discussions further down the line about flying her home, but just now, we are focusing on each day.
Spain Holiday Blood Genetic Condition Hospital Ventilator Family Rare Syndrome SWAN
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Woman and teenager arrested on suspicion of manslaughter two YEARS after teenager died in house fireA man and a woman have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter after a horrific blaze tore through a home and killed Leah Casson (pictured) two years ago.
Read more »
Teenager Fighting for Her Life After Lungs Fill with Blood on Spanish Family HolidayA 13-year-old girl from South Lanarkshire is in a critical condition in Spain after her lungs filled with blood during a family holiday. Charlotte Meek was rushed to hospital and remains on a ventilator in intensive care. Doctors are unsure what caused the bleeding and warn it could be weeks before she can be transferred home.
Read more »
Queen Letizia dazzles in red at Princess Girona Foundation meetingQueen Letizia of Spain attended a board meeting of the Princess Girona Foundation in Madrid, Spain.
Read more »
Teenager Jailed for 9 Years After Fatal CrashA UK teenager was sentenced to nine years in prison for causing the deaths of three friends in a car crash while under the influence of nitrous oxide.
Read more »
British Teenager Cleared of Rape in Dubai But Still Faces PrisonMarcus Fakana, a British teenager, was cleared of rape charges in Dubai but faces a year in prison for having consensual sex with a 17-year-old girl.
Read more »
Teenager with Muscular Dystrophy and Autism Finds Accessible Home Before ChristmasCurtis Herron, a 16-year-old with muscular dystrophy and autism, finally moved into an accessible social home before Christmas after a six-year wait.
Read more »