A fractured elbow after a bicycle accident at work was only the beginning of Simon Bäckström’s troubles.
In August 2022, he had to go to Gällivare to repair the fracture. During the operation, a cerclage, a kind of wire that holds the bones together at the elbow, was inserted and everything seemed to go well.
“Something is crazy”
It was only around Christmas when the 25-year-old picked up his son that he felt something was wrong.
– I had to go and have an X-ray and then you could see that the steel wire had begun to loosen and that things were not as they should be.
It turned out that a piece of the elbow bone was missing. To remedy this, a piece was taken from the hip bone and inserted into the elbow with a plate and screws.
– There was apparently a piece missing that had come off during the accident itself. Which you didn’t notice until then.
The bacteria ate through the skin
Simon Bäckström had to cast his arm after the second operation, but when the cast was removed there was a hole in the elbow of approximately three centimeters where both the metal plate and screws were visible.
– I thought you looked like Robocop, but it was just tragic that I was running around with a hole in my arm and a walking risk of infection.
After taking a sample, the doctor explained that a bacteria had eaten through the skin that was placed over the wound. In the journal, you can read that “Staphylococcus Capitis has grown from surgical wounds”, a bacterium that can be contracted during surgical procedures.
In the clip you will hear more about Simon’s hole in his arm.