MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A 7-year-old boy from Corinth, Mississippi, has recovered after being diagnosed with Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome.
As schools are back in session across much of the Mid-South, and the number of cases of COVID-19 is rising among children nationwide: some are wondering how is it impacting kids. One family from Mississippi experience it firsthand.
Joshua and Adrienne Hodum said their son, Bentley was in a fight for his life, and the doctors were desperate for answers. About two weeks ago, Bentley noticed a rash on his knee. The very next day, the rash began the spread, and Bentley got really sick. By the end of the week, he was hospitalized and tested for the coronavirus numerous times, but doctors had no answers. His parents said they did not know what was happening to their son.
“We don’t know what to expect next,” Joshua said. “We don’t know what to prepare for. Every step was guesswork.”
His mother echoed that and said no one knew what made their child sick.
“He’s got this. He’s got that,” Adrienne said. “Everything came back negative, negative, negative. That small voice in the back of your mind’s going: he’s got COVID. Something’s going on. He’s got COVID, or he’s had COVID.”
Bentley said he did not know what was wrong with him either, but he just wanted to get healthy. He was eventually transferred to Le bonheur. He was tested for the coronavirus again, but he tested negative but tested positive for antibodies.
His parents had contracted COVID six to eight weeks before, but their son never showed any symptoms. As the doctors learned this new information, they were able to diagnose him with Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in children.
Bentley went through misery for a week. His body was swollen, and he experienced stomach issues. Not to mention, he also had a rash, and his eyes were bulging.
Medical experts from across the country contributed remotely, and they were finally able to treat him.
“First of all, this is real. Second of all, you couldn’t have paid me a million dollars to think that my child would come down with this,” Adrienne said.
The road to recovery was long. During his time in the hospital, only Bentley’s mother Adrienne was allowed in his hospital room His dad drove 90 minutes every day just to stand in the parking lot and wave from 11 stories below.
“Even though I couldn’t physically be there in the room with him, I wanted to be just as close as I could,” Joshua said.
Just days ago, Bentley finally got to return home to be reunited with his father and his dog. His family said they are grateful for the health experts, the hospital where he was treated, and all the prayers and support they received from family and friends. They said without that, they do not know how this story would have ended.
“If it wasn’t for prayers, I don’t know where I would be. Prayers are what got us through that,” Adrienne said.
Joshed echoed his wife’s words.
“Those things are what give us the strength to say, okay, we’re going to get through this,” Joshua said.
The Hodum family hopes that Bentley’s medical scare will be an eye-opener for parents. Health officials said if your child has a combination of a rash, fever, and gastro issues, they could have residual effects from COVID after being asymptomatic with the virus.
