A WOMAN is at risk of dying after taking pills prescribed by a local hospital, the Shenzhen Evening News reported Thursday.

    The 24-year-old woman, identified as Xiaoyan, lives in Longgang District and went to see a doctor at Longgang District Central Hospital for neck pain. Li Guitao, a chief doctor from the department of orthopedics, prescribed four medications to relieve her pain.

    Xiaoyan vomited after taking the medication that night. The next day she went to the hospital again and another doctor told her to stop taking the medication but did not do any other medical checks on her.

    Though she stopped vomiting, Xiaoyan started to have a fever in the early morning three days after first seeing a doctor. A medical check on March 11 showed that her liver function was seriously damaged.

    Xiaoyan was transferred to Peking University Shenzhen Hospital but her physical condition kept worsening. She had a 40 degree Celsius fever that night and it was suggested she be transferred to the Third People’s Hospital in Shenzhen for further treatment. The diagnosis on March 12 showed that Xiao was suffering from a severe reaction to the drugs, respiratory failure, a pulmonary infection and drug-induced hepatitis.

    Xiaoyan’s condition kept worsening and the skin on her back began to peel off and bleed. Bottle-cap-sized bubbles appeared on her face.

    Xiaoyan went through medical interventions at the Second People’s Hospital of Shenzhen, the fourth hospital she stayed at. Ninety-seven percent of the skin on her body is peeling. Over a 10-day period, Xiaoyan could hardly breathe or eat. After being hospitalized for 28 days, her condition began to get better.

    “I wanted to die when my back became skinless and bloody,” said Xiaoyan.

    She is now staying at the Third People’s Hospital for further treatment.

    After all the pain Xiaoyan has gone through, no hospital has explained her symptoms. Xiaoyan’s family suspects it was related to the medication prescribed by the doctor from the Longgang District Central Hospital. The woman’s family said that the hospital insisted the medication prescribed was normal and the chance of an allergic reaction is one in a million. The family also admitted that Xiaoyan did not follow the doctor’s instruction to take three tablets each time. At once Xiaoyan took 15 tablets.

    The Longgang District Central Hospital paid 10,000 yuan (US$1,544) to Xiaoyan’s family as a “charity fund,” but did not admit they were to blame for Xiaoyan’s suffering. The hospital suggested the family hire a third-party institution to conduct a medial accident evaluation.

    The needy family has almost run out of money for Xiaoyan’s treatment. Xiaoyan’s relatives and friends, as well as some strangers, donated 130,000 yuan for her. The family is 120,000 yuan in debt.

    (Zhang Qian, Luo Yuying)