Dr. de Leonni Stanonik Survives Anaphylactic Shock

Upon arrival to Iticoatiara the team greeted a new member and said goodbye to an old one. Martin swam all day and was exhausted from the previous night which he spent stranded on the bank of the river.

Dr. de Leonni Stanonik who spent most of the day performing weekly physical exams on the team members tried one drop of esoteric oil on her skin that was brought to treat Martin.

She immediately developed itching on her whole torso and abdomen, she started coughing, and she started loosing feeling in her neck and chin. Within 15-20 minutes her chin became paralyzed and this paralysis continued upwards on her face. She developed angioedema of her lips (swollen lips), swollen eyes, ears, nose. It became obvious that she had entered the anaphylactic shock when her airway began to shut down and she could not breath any longer.

She recognized the symptoms and immediately asked to be transported to the municipal hospital Jose Mendes in Itacatiara.  By the time she was brought to the hospital she was in the beginning stages of respiratory arrest, half conscious and delirious.

The Emergency Room Team of Dr. Victor Oscar Garcia and Dr. Montenegro worked diligently to resuscitate her administering IV epinephrine, IV corticosteroids, IM cimetidine, IV fluids and nutrition, Oxygen via Nasal Canula, and maintaining her airway.

She responded to the treatment in the Emergency room but had to remain in the surgical Intensive Care unit over night for continued assessment, monitoring and medication administration.

She was able to leave the hospital today and re-join Martin and the Team on the boat.

This was a chillingly frightening experience, which exemplified the Team’s extremely vulnerability in the middle of the jungle as it could happen to any team member.

Dr. Latifi was consulted and attended to Dr. de Leonni Stanonik as she was in the Intensive Care Unit.

Martin would like to thank Dr. Garcia and his team for saving Dr. de Leonni Stanonik’s life, and is very grateful for supplying us with the necessary medical supplies as well as medication in case such an occasion should repeat itself on board. They provided all their services and equipment free of charge.

And Dr. de Leonni Stanonik is extremely happy to be alive and rejoined with the Team.