Camila Rose Burns’ parents have asked people to ‘please keep praying’ for their daughter (Picture: Sky News)
A four-year-old girl fighting for her life after being diagnosed with Strep A is now breathing by herself.
Camila Rose Burns’ parents say they are ‘praying for a miracle’ after doctors described her as ‘the poorliest girl in the whole of England’.
In a glimmer of hope, she has now been taken off the ventilator she has been on since November 28.
But she remains in the ICU in a Liverpool children’s hospital and is being heavily medicated as her organs try to recover.
It comes as nine children die from Strep A following a small outbreak of cases across the UK.
While still uncommon, cases of invasive Group A Strep are currently four times higher than normal among children aged between one and four, according to UK Health Security Agency (UKSHA) figures.
Camila is still battling Strep A alongside sepsis and her family won’t know the full impact until she heals, Bolton News reports.
Parents Dean and Kaye have asked people across the UK to ‘please keep praying’ for their daughter.
‘As you can imagine being off the ventilator is a massive improvement, but she is still extremely poorly’, they said.
Dad Dean Burns says doctors described his daughter as ‘the poorliest girl in the whole of England’ (Picture: Sky News)
What is Strep A?
Strep A can cause a lot of different illnesses, but tends to start off with a few typical mild symptoms.
Strep throat is different from a regular sore throat and the pain can come on very quickly.
Symptoms include pain when swallowing, fever, and red and swollen tonsils – sometimes with white patches or streaks of pus.
The NHS recommends people see their GP if a sore throat does not improve after a week, if they are worried or if they have a high temperature, or feel hot and shivery, which is the sign of a more serious infection.
People with weakened immune systems such as those having chemotherapy should also see a doctor.
Impetigo is a skin infection which starts with red sores or blisters that then burst, leaving crusty, golden patches. The infection can be treated with antibiotics.
Scarlet fever symptoms are often flu-like, including a high temperature, a sore throat and swollen neck glands.
A rash appears 12 to 48 hours later, starting on the chest and stomach and then spreading.
A white coating also appears on the tongue which peels, leaving the tongue red, swollen and covered in little bumps (often called ‘strawberry tongue’).
Signs of necrotising fasciitis include fever (a high temperature above 38°C), severe pain and swelling, and redness at the wound site.
Early signs and symptoms of toxic shock may include fever, dizziness, confusion, low blood pressure, rash and abdominal pain.
‘We have still not made it to the “safety” of being out of intensive care.
‘We are praying for her to continue to get better and for her body to recover so she can get back to playing at home with her family.’
Camila’s dad Dean said her illness was mild at first but suddenly became incredibly serious.
The distraught father said he’s been ‘living in an absolute nightmare’ since she was taken to hospital.
Speaking to Sky News, he previously said: ‘When we got here Monday, they said she’s the poorliest girl in the whole of England.
‘To go from dancing on Friday night with her friends, to a little bit under the weather on Saturday and then a bit more bad on Sunday, she’s basically not the same girl anymore. It’s heartbreaking.’
A GoFundMe has been created for Camila’s parents as they refuse to leave their little girl’s side. So far, it has raised £21,860.
Camilla became incredibly ill after initially only showing mild symptoms (Picture: Sky News)
The family is said to have been ‘overwhelmed’ by the donations from the fundraiser, which was set up by Camila’s auntie Laura Daniels.
Group A Streptococcus is the name given to a type of bacteria sometimes found in the throat or on the skin.
It usually causes mild illness, like a sore throat and skin infection, and most people carry it without any symptoms.
Rarely though, these bacteria can cause severe and life-threatening illness called invasive Group A Streptococcal disease.
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Camila Rose Burns’ parents have asked people to ‘please keep praying’ for their daughter.
