OLIVIA BASSETT
Leptospirosis
AKA Weil ' s disease
The dangers and what to look out for … I have been very fit and healthy all my life and have been an active member of the Bideford Canoe Club for 21 years . I enjoy paddling on the local rivers , including Torridge , Taw , Barle and Dart Loop , and I started sea kayaking eight years ago .
On 4th December 2022 , on a club trip on the Taw from Collaton Bridge , Bishop Teignton , to Umberleigh , I capsized a mile from Umberleigh and tried to roll twice but failed . I stayed calm underwater with my eyes open and banged my boat with my hands for a T-rescue , which was a success with the help of two club members .
On 16th December , I felt awful with a headache , fever and body aches . I went to bed with two paracetamols thinking I had flu . I stayed in bed for eight days as my condition deteriorated . My husband Steve had to take me to A & E on Christmas Eve .
My symptoms as days progressed :
The medical team struggled to find the cause of my illness . They suspected I had contracted a type of hepatitis and focussed on my travel history due to my severe jaundice .
Blood test results showed I had severe dehydration with hyponatraemia ( sodium concentration in blood is abnormally low ), acute kidney injury stage 3 , abnormal liver and kidney functions , severe jaundice and a viral disease . I was seriously ill . They started a saline IV to rehydrate me , an anti-sickness IV and a pain relief IV six hours after I arrived at A & E .
I was in A & E for 19 hours before a bed was available in a ward . Blood tests were taken two to three times