Healthy Teen Contracts COVID-19, Mom Shares Heartbreak After Losing Another Daughter from CF

A Texas mom shares her terrifying experience when her healthy daughter contracted COVID and said she could not breathe. She had lost another daughter in 2012 due to the genetic lung disease cystic fibrosis.

Christina Meredith told Good Morning America that her 15-year-old daughter got hospitalized a month ago. Now, the teenager is still showing symptoms of COVID-19. She explained that her healthy daughter was a volleyball player, an active cheerleader, and a runner.

Children do get sick

Meredith told the outlet that her daughter, Katelynn Ramirez, wants to remind people to wear face masks because kids do get sick. Her daughter noted that the deadly virus does not discriminate no matter what gender or age.

Meredith and their family suspect that Ramirez, who had underlying health conditions, contracted the virus from a fellow student in December. On December 22, the teen tested positive with the coronavirus after experiencing a runny nose, itchy throat, and a fever of 105 degrees.

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The certified nursing assistant had to go to work on December 28 and saw that her daughter could not breathe after peeking in to check on her. She said they were hoping her daughter would feel better because they were on day ten.

Together with her husband, Meredith brought her daughter to have an X-ray check at a local hospital. Doctors revealed that Ramirez has pneumonia and said she could go home if her oxygen remains in the 90s level.

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Lost a daughter once

Meredith was terrified because she had lost another daughter in 2012 due to the genetic lung disease cystic fibrosis. Working in the nursing field, she knew what could happen next, so while she tried to help composure, she was thinking the worst deep inside of her.

They moved Ramirez to Dell Children's Medical Center in Austin, Texas, and stayed there for 13 days. Although the teen received treatments for high flow nasal cannula and inflammation, Meredith was thankful her daughter did not have to be intubated.

The doctors administered the drug remdesivir to Ramirez, and she and her mom agreed to join in a study. On January 8, Ramirez finally got sent home. Meredith said that her daughter is still taking blood thinners and experiences fatigue, neurological issue, headaches, and tingling in her legs.

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She added that her daughter is starting with her physical and occupational therapy.

A Chicago-based primary care physician, Jay D. Bhatt, told the outlet that showing few symptoms could be caused by a long-term COVID exposure complication. He said that they are learning new symptoms that appear every day.

Meredith and her daughter want to raise awareness about how young people could catch the deadly virus. Bhatt agreed and said that anyone in the path of the virus has a risk of getting it. He and Meredith remind the public to follow the precautionary measures to stay safe.