High school graduate inspired to be doctor after bout with SJS
June 7th, 2010 by Jennifer Walker-Journey
Jordan Lewis was just six years old when the medication he took for an ear infection nearly cost him his life. Jordan, now a recent high school graduate, had developed an allergic reaction to the medication, called Stevens Johnson Syndrome, or SJS. The little boy broke out in a rash that turned to blisters. The painful sores covered his skin, mouth and eyes. “I remember my mom crying a lot, actually,” Jordan told CBS 2. “There was a lot of that going on.”
SJS is a serious reaction that while rare, can be triggered by a number of medications. Antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs are among the drugs most often associated with the condition, including over-the-counter versions of ibuprofen. As many as 40 percent of those who develop SJS will die. Those who do survive often have lifelong consequences caused by scars on the eyes or internal organs from the painful blisters. Blindness and vision problems are a common lingering symptom. For Jordan, that threat was all too real.
“We started to be concerned he might not live,” said his mother Maria Green. When he finally began to pull through, “he hadn’t opened his eyes for a week.” The damage had been done. Jordan was practically blind.
At that time, Jordan underwent an unprecedented surgery that placed in Jordan’s eyes and eyelids a protective coating made of amniotic membrane found in human placenta. The surgery was a success. Before long, he was playing video games.
Now, Jordan has his sights on his future. He wants to be a doctor. “If it wasn’t for (my doctor), I’d be at a school for the blind,” Jordan said. “I wouldn’t be where I am today.”