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Last spring, Tiffany Fite of Edmond was an active 39-year-old training for a physically grueling rim-to-rim hike of the Grand Canyon when she woke up with sharp pain on the inside of her upper right arm and bumps on her hands.

“My husband, Weston, and I love being outdoors – camping, hiking and spending time with our two kids,” says Tiffany. “I thought the pain in my arm was from overdoing it during my workout and assumed I got a few bug bites while gardening.” 

A few nights later though, she developed a fever and couldn’t sleep due to severe pain in her legs. She woke up Weston, who immediately took her to the emergency room. While there, an assessment and blood panel revealed that she had blood clots, her kidneys were failing and there were serious concerns for sepsis. Sepsis can be a life-threatening medical condition that occurs when the body’s response to an infection causes extensive inflammation, leading to tissue damage, organ failure and, in severe cases, death.

Tiffany was transferred via ambulance to INTEGRIS Health Southwest Medical Center. Her condition continued to decline, and she developed multiple organ failure.

Her critical illness was caused by a catastrophic case of toxic shock syndrome due to an invasive Group A Streptococcus infection. The inflammatory response, triggered by the infection, led to heart failure and circulatory failure.

The multi-disciplinary care team at INTEGRIS Health Southwest Medical Center recognized Tiffany’s rapidly declining condition. They initiated consideration and discussion for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation, commonly abbreviated as ECMO, a lifesaving therapy that provides support to patients whose heart and/or lungs are so severely damaged that they can longer function on their own.

The INTEGRIS Health ECMO team mobilized to pick up Tiffany and transported her to the Nazih Zuhdi Transplant Institute at INTEGRIS Health Baptist Medical Center, where the ECMO program is headquartered.

“When she arrived at INTEGRIS Health Baptist Medical Center, her breathing was very labored. She wasn’t oriented and had a hard time speaking,” says Tori Kyle, APRN. “I remember standing in the ICU and mentioning that her blood pressure was low. We had to put her on ECMO.”

“With ECMO support, we were able to stabilize her rapidly deteriorating condition,” says Specialty Critical Care physician Obaid Ashraf, M.D. “She also required mechanical ventilation and temporary dialysis.”

Given the severity of her condition and illness, Tiffany’s chance of survival was less than 5%. Gradually though, over the course of almost two months in the hospital, her health improved. Her heart and organ function allowed the care team to discontinue ECMO support and mechanical ventilation, her bone marrow recovered and her kidneys regained function.

“In cases of toxic shock syndrome caused by Group A Streptococcus, early recognition is critical,” explains Ashraf. “Tiffany’s case highlights the coordinated efforts of specialized physicians and mid-levels with broad expertise – specialty critical care with expertise in ECMO, infectious disease, vascular surgery, orthopedic surgery, nephrology, hematology and rehabilitation teams – who facilitated her survival and recovery from this life-threatening illness.”