Woman gets life-threatening infection after wearing hair tie on wrist
People have been wearing hair ties around their wrists for a long time. You never know when you're going to want to put up your hair -- having it around your wrist like a bracelet is is a quick and convenient trick.
But no one thought such a simple life hack could have such life-threatening consequences.
When it happened to Audree Kopp, she didn't believe it at first.
%shareLinks-quote="I thought that it was a spider bite, or something else, not from wearing hair-ties." type="quote" author="Audree Kopp" authordesc="" isquoteoftheday="false"%
When the Kentucky woman first noticed a bump on her wrist, she told CBS Local that she didn't think much of it. Although her doctor gave her antibiotics, the problem only increased.
"It just kept getting bigger, and redder, and worse," Kopp said.
The nasty infection eventually landed her in the emergency room -- and not a moment too soon, Kopp said.
%shareLinks-quote="They said I needed surgery ... Thank god I caught it in time or I could have had sepsis." type="quote" author="Audree Kopp" authordesc="" isquoteoftheday="false"%
Dr. Amit Gupta, of Norton Healthcare in Louisville, believes that bacteria from one of her glittery hair ties had found its way under her skin, causing a "large abscess on the back of her wrist."
The doctor issued a warning to everyone who wears hair ties.
%shareLinks-quote="Be careful you can't tie all those hair-ties around the wrist ... It can cause problems with the skin. It can cause infection." type="quote" author="Dr. Amit Gupta" authordesc="Norton Healthcare." isquoteoftheday="false"%
The Kentucky woman knows how lucky she is, according to WKLY.
"It could have been a whole different ball game," she admitted.
%shareLinks-quote="Once it gets into your bloodstream, people have been known to go into a coma, your body shuts down. It could have been worse. " type="quote" author="Audree Kopp" authordesc="" isquoteoftheday="false"%
The survivor said she will no longer wear the hair accessory around her wrists and will make sure to clean them all.
RELATED: Dog Survives After Eating 62 Hair Ties:
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