TriVent Healthcare News
UAB patient shares difficult experience to warn others of the dangers of scleroderma
Katie Hooks, 23, was living a pretty normal life, until the morning she woke up with her face swollen shut. Soon after, she was on a ventilator at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, unable to speak or move.
Hooks’ journey to UAB Hospital began with what she thought was just an allergic reaction. She took some allergy medicine to try to mitigate the swelling of her face. But as the days went on, the swelling progressed to the rest of her body. She could not breathe, her body became stiff, and within months, she had completely lost her mobility and independence.
One night, Hooks woke up experiencing shortness of breath and was transported to UAB Hospital. She was quickly placed on a BPAP machine, a type of ventilator to help push air into her lungs and treat chronic conditions that affect breathing. Within hours, physicians at UAB diagnosed her with scleroderma and systemic lupus overlap with associated myositis.
Scleroderma is an autoimmune disease that causes the skin to become inflamed and swollen, often leading to hardening due to a buildup of scar tissue. Internal organs such as the heart, blood vessels, lungs, intestinal tract and kidneys can also be damaged. Lupus is an autoimmune disease that damages tissue in many parts of the body, including skin, joints, lungs and kidneys. Myositis, when it occurs in these disorders, causes muscles to become irritated and inflamed, eventually leading to the muscles breaking down and becoming weak.
“I really felt like I was slowly dying …”
“By the time I was admitted to UAB, I had been struggling to breathe for months,” Hooks said. “I really felt like I was slowly dying, but I had convinced myself that I was overthinking this and that nothing was wrong. I just remember being admitted to UAB, closing my eyes and saying ‘God, if this is my time, please take me. I am ready to go.’”