Hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS)

Jentry Prock was a healthy, spunky 1-year-old when she became sick and started complaining of stomach pain. After a visit to her pediatrician, who first assumed she had a stomach bug, Jentry’s mom, Samantha, noticed her daughter was still extremely lethargic and her symptoms had worsened. After more tests, her doctor noticed her kidney numbers were not right and immediately sent Jentry to Children’s of Alabama.
 
Jentry was admitted to the special care unit, and doctors informed her family that her kidneys were failing. She was diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome, or HUS, a rare condition that causes blood vessels to be damaged, which leads to damage and failure of the kidneys. Jentry had surgery to have a dialysis line inserted, and doctors moved her to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), where she was intubated and put on a ventilator. “It was an emotional roller coaster, Samantha said. “She would have her good days and her bad days.”
 
As a result of HUS, two-thirds of Jentry’s colon died and had to be removed. Doctors eventually had to create an ileostomy (giving her an ostomy bag). The severe illness also damaged Jentry’s pancreas, which caused her to develop Type 1 Diabetes.
 
After 45 days, Jentry was able to come off the ventilator, but doctors worried she might have lost some brain function. She began physical, occupational, and speech therapy where she learned to walk and talk again. Doctors determined her brain was still fully functioning, and she hadn’t lost any memory. “She came back to life,” Samantha said. “She knew who her mommy and daddy were.” After four months in the hospital, Jentry was finally discharged, but with an ileostomy bag and nasogastric tube.
 
A few months later, after Jentry began follow-up appointments,  labs showed she was going into chronic kidney failure. Her doctors determined she needed a kidney transplant. She started dialysis three days a week and went through the lengthy process of a kidney transplant evaluation. First, doctors had to reverse her ileostomy and place a feeding tube in her stomach. She developed a bowel obstruction, which required surgery. Then, Jentry underwent a nephrectomy, which is the removal of the kidneys.  
 
Finally, six weeks after her nephrectomy, Jentry was placed on the transplant list. Five months later, she had a successful kidney transplant surgery. “It’s been life-changing,” Samantha said.

Since her transplant, Jentry, now 3 years old, has developed a love for medical toys. “We probably have 15 stethoscopes in this house,” Samantha said. She says Jentry will probably end up working in the medical field when she is older because she has a deep understanding of what happened to her and, even at her age, she appreciates everything her medical staff did for her. “She has a very big story to tell, and I think she’ll tell it,” Samantha said. “The future is very bright for her.”