David “Davey” Bauer, 34 years old, is the protagonist of a story that began with the flu and ended with two breast implants that saved her life. A vaper for years, and a smoker for only a couple of them, the man contracted the Influenza A virus, which should normally be taken without a problem in someone of your age. But the disease became complicated, leading to a bacterial infection in the lungs which turned out to be antibiotic resistant. The bacteria were liquefying his lungs, which meant they had to be removed from his chest cavity, awaiting a transplant. But this opened the doors to an unusual complication that could only be solved with two breast implants. Literally, getting breasts saved her life.
All this has been possible thanks to the pioneering collaboration between pulmonologists and plastic surgeons at Northwestern Hospital, in United States. Of course, also thanks to the lung donor and her family.
He teamwork From very different perspectives it has saved the life of a man who now claims to be proud of the breast implants he had for just 24 hours. But why were they so necessary?
Breast implants to open doors to the heart
Although this news It was just announced in a statement from Northwestern Hospital, it all started last May. Bauer began to feel unwell and went to a St. Louis hospital, where he was diagnosed influenza A. Seeing that he was not improving, new tests were performed, which confirmed that he was suffering from a bacterial lung infection. We proceeded to regular antibiotic treatmentbut the bacteria was resistant to all of them.
The symptoms only got worse; Well, as was seen in the x-rays, the bacteria was literally eating the lungs. Before they collapsed, it was decided to remove what was left of them and prepare everything for a transplant when a donor arrived. But of course, no one can live without lungs.
Initially he was connected to a extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) machine. These devices are very common in people waiting for heart or lung transplants, since they are responsible for extracting blood, oxygenating it, and returning it back to the patients’ body.
The ECMO machine could help keep the body without lungs for a while. But there was a problem. And, when extracting them, the rib cage was more spacious than normal, so that the displacement of the heart.
To prevent this from happening, pulmonologists thought about placing Bauer two breast implants. Although these are almost always used for aesthetic purposes, in this case they could temporarily occupy the space of the lungs to avoid greater harm.
An accelerated plastic surgery class
Pulmonologists, understandably, are not familiar with breast implants. Therefore, they turned to the hospital’s plastic surgeons; who, according to what they say in the statement, gave them an accelerated class about types of implants and forms of application.
After choosing those that would be most suitable for the patient, they enrolled him on the priority waiting list for lung transplants. All that was left was to wait, but it was not necessary to do so for a long time, because in just 24 hours They had a compatible donor. The implants were removed, the new lungs were placed and it was found that, indeed, Bauer He no longer needed ECMO to survive.
The intervention was a success, although, logically, he still had a few months of recovery ahead of him. Was discharged last September, leaving the nightmare behind.
Did you get sick from being a vaper?
It cannot be known for sure whether vaping was responsible for Bauer’s infection. The man had been a vaper since 2014 and he himself has acknowledged that, although he did it to replace tobacco, he discovered that, at least for him, it was a lot more addictive.
Now, to what extent has this habit had a relationship with your illness? It is not known. But it is true that there is quite solid evidence of the relationship between vaping and respiratory infections.
For example, in 2018 a study was carried out in which a culture of lung cells was exposed to electronic cigarette vapor with or without nicotine. Another set of bacteria that served as a control was not exposed to any type of vapor. These cells were then brought into contact with pneumococcal bacteria, causing pneumonia, and it was observed how they adhered to the cells and proliferated in them. With cigarette vapor, both with and without nicotine, the number of bacteria that adhered was twice as high as without vapor. Therefore, it seems that they facilitate the bacterial proliferation in the respiratory tract.
The same effects have been analyzed later in both mice and humansso it doesn’t seem like a coincidence.
Before the month of May, Bauer was a healthy man, who did not usually get sick. A 34-year-old person with no previous pathologies should not get so seriously ill from the flu. There could possibly have been something that helped those resistant bacteria latch onto those lungs. And it would not be strange if that silent helper were the vapor of the electronic cigarette.