Gwinnett Mother with Flesh-Eating Disease Shows Improvement

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Cindy Martinez, the Gwinnett mother who is battling flesh-eating bacteria, is far from being in the clear, but her husband told reporters Thursday there’s been some significant progress.

Martinez still faces the possibility of needing amputations, but husband David Martinez, a Gwinnett County cop, said she has been moved out of the Intensive Care Unit at Gwinnett Medical Center and is breathing on her own.

“The doctors feel the bacteria has stopped,” Martinez said at an afternoon press conference at the hospital, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

Related

• Outpouring of Support for Mother Battling Flesh-Eating Bacteria
• Woman With Flesh-Eating Bacteria Faces Possible Amputations
• ‘Flesh-Eating’ Bacteria Hits Home

Martinez has been in the Gwinnett Medical Center since she went to the emergency room on May 25 with severe pain in her left shoulder.

She has been diagnosed with necrotizing fasciitis and myositis, a rare and potentiall deadly disease, and has already endured several surgeries. She hasn’t seen her kids since her hospitalization, WSB-TV reported.

Doctors are still not sure how she contracted the bacteria, 11Alive reported.

There has been an outpouring of support for the family since news broke last week. The “Cindy Martinez Family Fund”on GoFundMe had raised more than $60,000 (of a $500,000 goal) as of Friday afternoon. There have been community fundraising efforts planned, too.

How you can help

• GoFundMe: “Cindy Martinez Family Fund”
• Facebook: ”Support Cindy & David Martinez”

Thursday night, David Martinez attended a summer swimming meet and fundraiser in Dacula between the Daniel Park Twisters and the Wild Timber of Sugar Hill, with proceeds from concession sales and a silent auction going to the family to help offset medical and after-care expenses.

Hundreds of people attended the event, the Gwinnet Daily Post reported.

“I wish she could be here and see this,” David Martinez told the Post. “I have tears in my eyes, but it’s because I’m so full of joy right now.”

Next month, the United Peachtree Corners Civic Association plans a fundraiser at the Atlanta Bread Company restaurant located at The Forum. Deadline to register for the July 30 event, which will feature a food and wine pairing event and silent auction, is July 26. Get more info here.

Photo: “Cindy Martinez Family Fund” GoFundMe