New dad, 29, misdiagnosed with tonsillitis dies the next day from fatal condition epiglottitis
"Watching Jacob grow up without his daddy by his side is devastating," a grieving widow shared, after she lost her husband following a doctor's misdiagnosis.
Michael Reynolds was just 29-years-old when he visited his local general practitioner (GP) - which is the Brit equivalent of the US' primary care physician (PCP) - in November 2023, initially complaining of a sore and swollen throat with a cough that had persisted for two to three months.
The father-of-one - who welcomed son Jacob into the world just months before his death - was prescribed a steroid nasal spray and sent home. However, his symptoms worsened and the following day he returned as he was unable to swallow, this time he was seen by a different doctor.
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The truck driver was unable to eat, swallow, and complained that his throat was closing up - and was even spitting into a bowl because he couldn't swallow.
He asked the practitioner whether he needed to go to A&E - which again is the UK version for the ER - but his concerns were brushed off and instead he was diagnosed with tonsillitis and prescribed oral antibiotics.
After calling into the pharmacy on the way home to pick up the medication, he arrived home and was greeted by his wife Charlotte and their son, before collapsing and having a seizure.
Michael, of Boston - a town in East England, died the following morning after having been rushed to hospital.
"Watching Jacob grow up without his daddy by his side is devastating and we miss Michael every single day," the 31-year-old widow said.
“Michael meant everything to us and losing him has left a huge hole in our lives that will never go away. We’d do anything to bring him back."
An inquest into his death - that was held in December 2023 - found that there was a 'missed opportunity' to send Michael to hospital for urgent treatment, while post-mortem revealed that he had suffered a cardiac arrest triggered by a lack of oxygen due to his throat closing.
The coroner concluded Michael died from a hypoxic cardiac arrest related to an upper airway obstruction and epiglottitis - swelling of the flap that covers the windpipe when swallowing.
Charlotte continued: "The inquest and reliving everything again has been particularly upsetting, but at least I now have some answers as to why Michael’s no longer with us and I will be able to explain this to Jacob when he is old enough to understand.
"All I can hope for now is that by sharing our story, it can lead to improvements in care for others and more awareness around the signs of epiglottitis and the need for emergency treatment, as it’s something I’d never even heard of before.
"I wouldn’t want anyone going through what we have."
Joe Yates