A man from Franktown, Colorado has undergone a life-changing experience after initially suffering a minor burn during a camping trip with friends, resulting in becoming a bilateral amputee.
Max Armstrong was on a camping excursion in Kiowa last December when he accidentally burned his thumb on a skillet while preparing pasta for his friends. Reflecting on the incident, the 40-year-old described it as “a hunting trip with friends that turned into a bit of a nightmare.”
“I grabbed a skillet wrong and my thumb touched the hot part, I could feel it burning as I moved it to the table but I didn’t want to drop it,” said Max. He didn’t worry much about it at first, as he’s accustomed to minor injuries from spending much time outdoors. “After dinner, I cleaned up the burn, put a bandage on it and left it,” he recalled.
However, in the following days, Max noticed swelling in his left leg, a change in the color of his toenails to purple, and ongoing pain. Initially, he suspected these symptoms were due to an unnoticed ankle injury.
Six days later, on December 7, he was taken to a nearby hospital. Upon reaching the ER, he became severely unwell, with his eyes rolling back. Medical professionals determined that strep A bacteria had infected his burn, leading to a rapid onset of sepsis, a potentially fatal condition if not addressed promptly.
Max commented, “Sadly, dinner was enough for the burn to get strep A. At that point, my toenails started turning purple, and the swelling had increased.”
He was placed in an induced coma for six days, and upon waking on December 13, was informed by doctors that both of his feet had become necrotic, leading to the decision to amputate. The procedure took place on December 23, lasting three hours.
“Initially when I woke up, I thought my legs were still there and then I came to realise that they weren’t,” he shared. “I felt down my leg and realised that my legs weren’t there. I asked the nurse and she confirmed that I had my legs amputated. She told me that my family was waiting for me and kept on reminding me of them which anchored me.”
Following more than a month at the hospital, Max returned home to his wife Megan, aged 42. A GoFundMe page has been launched to assist with his medical expenses.