Covid: Boy "almost blinded" by eye infection linked to virus

A nine-year-old boy could have been left blind when he developed an eye infection after contracting Covid, his mother said.

Zac was in hospital over Christmas when his left eye swelled up.

The primary school pupil, from Bradley Stoke, South Gloucestershire, has since recovered after having intravenous antibiotics.

His mother Angela Morey said the whole experience "was really scary" and even more "sad because it was Christmas".

The local councillor explained her whole family had contracted the virus by December 16 and self-isolated together in line with government guidelines.

Zac, a Year 5 pupil, began complaining about having a sore eye on December 22 but initially Ms Morey thought nothing of it.

When it continued to worsen, the mother-of-five had a remote consultation with his GP before being referred to Bristol Eye Hospital which diagnosed her son with orbital cellulitis - a bacterial infection of the eye socket.

The infection - which can cause blindness - can occur after any infection but was most likely caused by Zac's bout of Covid, Ms Storey said.

They prescribed antibiotics and cream before sending the family away.

With it showing no signs of improvement the family returned to the Bristol Royal Hospital for Children on Christmas Eve, where Zac was admitted for a course of drugs intravenously.

Zac was taken for a CT scan to see if the infection had spread further into his eye but as it had not he was discharged on Boxing Day

Ms Storey, 37, said that she "rushed down to the hospital at 08:30 BST on Christmas Day" to ensure that Zac was not alone.

She said: "The main thing was that he would not be alone and sad.

"When I got there all the staff were dressed up and they'd done a bag of presents for him.

"He said how nice they had made it for him.

"He was quite spoiled - more so than he would have been at home."

Zac has since made a full recovery and his mother has thanked the NHS for everything they did.

She said: "I've got five children but I've been very lucky with them.

"My daughter was very ill when she was a baby and spent 10 days in intensive care.

"Zac had never been to the doctors before this but the NHS ended up saving his sight.

"These things can just happen and it makes me appreciate the health service even more."