Miss World finalist who had hands and feet amputated after being hit by infection dies

Posted by mija on Jan 25, 2009 in News | 0 comments

A two-time Miss World finalist whose feet and hands were amputated after contracting a drug-resistant infection has died.
Brazilian model Mariana Bridi, 20, died early on Saturday morning from complications related to a generalised infection caused by the bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the Espirito Santo State Health Secretariat said in a statement. The bacteria is known to be resistant to multiple kinds of antibiotics.
Health officials on Friday said Bridi was not breathing on her own and was undergoing hemodialysis at a hospital in the city of Serra.
The beauty had undergone emergency surgery this week after she fell ill with a virus that spread to her blood.
Her devastated boyfriend Thiago Simoes said at the time: ‘We are all absolutely distraught and are just praying now that she can pull through.
‘She fell ill on December 30 and we took her to hospital where she was misdiagnosed with a kidney stone.


‘They gave her some medicine and sent her home. But two days later she started getting worse.
‘We took her back to hospital and they said she had a very serious infection.
‘She got more and more sick, and had no blood circulation to her limbs.
‘First she lost her feet, then on Tuesday she lost both her hands.
‘But she is a very strong person and we just want her to survive.’
Doctors took the heartbreaking decision to amputate her feet when the poison spread to her blood and cut off her circulation.

Then they decided they would have to remove her hands as well.
But after that surgery she suffered an internal haemorrhage and had another emergency operation on Wednesday afternoon.
Miss Bridi was a finalist in the search for Brazil’s Miss World contestant in 2006 and 2007.
In 2007 she flew to China to represent her country in the Miss Bikini international competition.
She won a prize there for the most beautiful body, and came sixth out of 50 candidates.
Henrique Fontes, executive director of Miss World Brazil, said Miss Bridi badly needs a transfusion of the uncommon blood type O negative.
He said: ‘She has always been a great fighter and has a history of perseverance.
‘The first time she took part in a beauty contest, in 2006, she travelled for 20 hours on a bus in very plain clothes, and without any preparation, and she ended up coming fourth. We need her to show that same kind of fight now.
‘In China she took on girls from 50 countries, and came sixth and won the prize for best body.
‘This is a desperately sad story and we are calling on potential donors to come forward and give blood.’
source: dailymail.co.uk