It was quite painful, he said, but when...

Meriden - pimple on his feet became terrible wounds the size of a baseball for Middletown resident Randy Travis. He was lucky not lost a leg. Cheshire resident Raymond Mick awoke in the morning with corn on the foot. The next day the leg was swollen and full of bubbles. It reached a point where it seemed that his foot was on fire. He spent months, which included two extended stays in hospital, not quite understanding what is happening. I'm just rolling with tension, he said. For Travis, who also had a similar development in the abdomen, from acne to a boil on the wound, progress has been impressive, or as he put it, blew my mind. It looks like something from a horror film, he said. Mick and Travis were both impressed by the extremely rare condition in the past few years, increasing in frequency. It is known as necrotic fastsyyt, but because it is such a piece, it is often referred to simply as carnivorous disease. Meat eating bacteria. It is rare but is becoming more prevalent as bacteria become more aggressive and resistant, said Dr. Zeb A. Ali, doctor of wound care center MidState Medical Center strattera prescription, on Pomeroy Avenue. Ali said that while ten years ago, the conditions will affect about one million, today it is closer to one in 10,000. In 1996, reports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated from 500 to 1500 cases per year, 20 percent die from the disease. National Endowment necrotic fastsyyt subsequently rated the number of cases above. MidState wound center saw four cases related to carnivorous bacteria, including Mick Travis as center was opened in 2004. Center moved to Pomeroy Avenue, next to MediQuick emergency room, about a year ago. Necrotizing fastsyyt is an infection caused by streptococcus bacteria, the same thing that causes Strep throat, which is usually easily treated with antibiotics. But this is a very strong variety. Flesh bacteria, tissue destruction and the condition is often accompanied by extreme flulike symptoms. In the past, the disease usually involved those that are usually fragile or have other diseases, said Ali, but now can be community acquired. You want to know if you have the bacteria, said Ali. It should not be a big open wound. All it takes is a break in the skin. Because symptoms are similar one, often small, provided the use of meat bacteria can evade the initial diagnosis. One of the key factors is that it's fast aggressive, said Ali. This rapid disease progression may be several hours. It's very dramatic, said Ali. This is a great feature. You'll know something is wrong, big time, he said. You begin to feel very bad as the worst flu of your life. 35-year old Travis installed 12-volt electronics and trained in mixed martial arts, until faced with a carnivorous bacteria. He never had an abscess in my life, he said, until one in the abdomen led to his clinic in Middletown, about two months ago. Boil it was open and he was put on antibiotics. Almost two weeks later in the process of cooking developed on foot. It was quite painful, he said, but when he grew up to four inches in diameter, the pain was extreme, and he developed a high fever. He returned to the clinic where the doctor found dead tissue. That's when he was transferred to the center of the wound MidState, where he learned that if he waited another week or so was a good opportunity, he would have lost a leg. Mick, 57, retired several years ago after a 36-year career as a highway maintenance crew leader with the State Department of Transportation. His wife, Donna, is a primary school Platt high. Mick woke up with foot problems at the end of January. On the third day, his wife insists that he went to the hospital. He spent 10 days in the university town of Bradley Memorial Hospital of Central Connecticut in Southington, receiving antibiotics. It was believed that streptococcal infection. They really did not mention the necrotic at the time, he said. After being discharged from the hospital, he received care nurse comes, but when the legs are developed that kind of fire. After the doctor examined him at the center of wound care, Mick was sent to hospital, this time MidState. I can tell by his face that he was very serious, said Mick. He had surgery to remove dead tissue. All this time I heard the words, you're lucky, he said. Once I found out I was lucky, because they saved my leg. Both Travis and Mick were hyperbaric oxygenation. High levels of oxygen through accelerated wound healing. Treatment includes up to 14 times the normal level of oxygen, said Ali. So the main dose. Travis was 10 sessions, once a day. Mick passed the 40 procedures, spend 2:00 in the chamber every time. I was lucky, I had many caring friends, said Mick, whose healing also involves skin grafts. Now, everyone attends Treatment Center wound once a week to monitor progress. A very small percentage of carriers obtain it said Ali. But the key point is that it increases in frequency. .