Rhode Island firefighter loses hand to flesh-eating bacteria
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A Rhode Island firefighter who got an infection after being pricked by a thorn has lost his hand to flesh-eating bacteria.
Thirty-two-year-old Braden Leonard, of Newport, says he was biking in Ballard Park in June when he fell and a thorn pricked his right hand.
The nine-year veteran of the Johnston Fire Department had inflammation, fever and fatigue, and his friends persuaded him to go to the emergency room.
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Doctors diagnosed the rare necrotizing fasciitis, commonly known as a flesh-eating infection. They amputated the hand to stop the infection's spread. He was in the hospital for 10 days.
Leonard tells WJAR-TV he's in good spirits and feels lucky to be alive. He says he hopes to be fitted with a prosthetic and return to his job as a firefighter.