10:51am Monday 15th March 2010
By Hannah Upton
A SIX-year-old boy needed a life-saving operation after he developed a rare illness.
It was initially thought that William Cowell merely had an ear infection after he was seen by his GP and at the Royal Blackburn Hospital.
But he quickly developed an abscess the size of a golf ball as a result of the condition mastoiditis, which can be fatal if untreated.
His mother, Marie Marsden, 37, of Lansdowne Street, Blackburn, said her son’s condition should have been spotted earlier.
She has now sought legal advice.
William, a pupil at Griffin Park Primary School, is now recovering at home.
Lancashire Telegraph medical expert Dr Tom Smith said: “William was very lucky because untreated mastoiditis can cause meningitis.
“The abscess could also have burst through the skull into the brain cavity.
“Mastoiditis is a very nasty condition and William went too long without somebody having a proper look at him.
“It can be easy to miss at first but the doctor should be seeing the child every two to three days to see if it is getting better.
"Certainly, if there is pus coming out of the ear, the child needs to be sent straight to the Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) clinic.”
Ms Marsden said it took over three weeks from him first being seen by nurses to finally being admitted for emergency treatment.
Eventually he underwent an emergency operation to drain the abscess which had been growing behind his ear.
In a joint statement, the two health authorities said: “NHS Blackburn with Darwen and East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust are concerned to hear of the issues raised in relation to this little boy.
“His family have not raised a complaint with us.
“But we would like to reassure them that we will investigate this matter further and would be happy to discuss any concerns about William’s treatment with them.”
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