Auckland woman who wound up in a coma during Covid-19 outbreak says she was not heard

A young woman who spent weeks in a coma with mycoplasma pneumonia says she had to fight to be taken seriously after testing negative for Covid-19.

Aucklander Anya Imandin, 23, said she felt she was “not heard” during her ordeal in March, as healthcare workers were concerned about the virus.

Her symptoms started as a dry cough and a sore throat around March 18, but within 12 days she developed a fever, headache, and vomiting.

On March 30, the day the Freemans Bay woman was taken to Auckland City Hospital, she was barely able to speak or stand.

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Imandin said that during those 12 days, a GP and Healthline told him multiple times to just rest.

Her mother took her to a medical clinic on March 25, where she had to “pressure” doctors to test her for coronavirus, she said.

Imandin was prescribed antibiotics and his coronavirus test came back negative, but he continued to deteriorate.

An ambulance was called on March 27 because he had no power and had not eaten properly in days. However, they did not take her to the hospital.

On March 30, Imandin returned to the medical clinic, and her mother “insisted” that a doctor see her.

After a drip “did nothing,” they called an ambulance and took Imandin to hospital.

Imandin was intubated and spent time in both the intensive care medicine department and the cardiothoracic and vascular intensive care unit, her discharge documents show.

During this time, she was cannulated, placed on an ECMO machine, which pumps blood throughout her body, and received a tracheostomy. Her lungs were drained twice.

He was in a coma for about three weeks, during which time he had another negative coronavirus test. Eventually she was diagnosed with mycoplasma pneumonia.

The disease, sometimes described as atypical pneumonia, is generally difficult to diagnose, said Dr. Thomas Proft, associate professor of microbiology and infectious diseases at the University of Auckland.

“The problem is that the symptoms often point to other infectious agents that more often cause pneumonia and upper respiratory infections.”

Patients must be specifically tested for the bacteria that cause mycoplasma pneumonia for it to appear: “You have to know what you’re looking for,” Proft said.

University of Otago infectious disease professor David Murdoch said that many mycoplasma pneumonia patients begin to recover after a few days.

Since Imandin had been in the ICU, received ECMO and had fluid drained from his lungs, he indicated that he had had a “very severe case,” he said.

When Imandin woke up, he had lost 10 kilograms and had a gait abnormality called drop foot in his left foot.

He spent around six and a half weeks in the hospital recovering, much of it without his parents due to restrictions.

“I cried every day that I was conscious in the hospital.”

You have filed a complaint with the Commissioner for Health and Disabilities about the medical clinic and St John, as well as a complaint directly to St John, about the care you received prior to your hospitalization.

“As the Covid-19 pandemic continues, the healthcare system cannot afford to be overly concerned about a single virus,” he wrote.

“People will continue to have other medical conditions that must be treated appropriately and effectively.”

The commissioner and St John confirmed that they had received complaints, but cannot comment until the process is complete.

The medical clinic has been contacted for comment.