An Australian woman is fighting for her life after she contracted a deadly infection following a tummy tuck.
Brenna McIntosh, 29, underwent the routine cosmetic procedure, also known as abdominoplasty, after losing almost 90 pounds and was left with excess belly skin, Perth Now reported.
The surgery went without a hitch at first, but the Melbourne resident began feeling unwell eight days later, according to the outlet.
Doctors initially thought McIntosh contracted a less serious infection and she was prescribed antibiotics — but she soon took a turn for the worse.
A surgeon discovered that she had contracted necrotizing fasciitis, a rare but serious flesh-eating bacterial infection that affects the tissue under the skin and surrounding muscles and organs.
McIntosh was placed in an induced coma at Alfred Hospital, where her condition is so rare that only one other case has been linked to a tummy tuck in the world, according to Perth Now.
The young woman also has been receiving hyperbaric oxygen therapy, a type of treatment used to speed up the healing of gangrene, stubborn wounds and infections in which tissues are starved for oxygen.
“Brenna will have a long recovery ahead of her, resulting in multiple months off work and loss of income,” said her friend Lauren Vanderven, who launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for the mounting medical costs.
“Brenna has made so many people smile both in-person & through social media, so let’s give her a reason to smile,” Vanderven wrote.