January 8th 2024.
Jude Keil, 10, from Bobbing, Kent, has spent more than 300 days in hospital with no answers. His parents, Peter, 43, and Emma, 41, first took him to Medway Maritime Hospital in early February 2023, after he complained of difficulty breathing and told his father he was tired. It was the last time his parents would hear him speak.
Jude had been failing to clear carbon dioxide from his lungs and was suffocating. He was put in a medically induced coma and since then, has been diagnosed with an unknown type of motor polyneuropathy. While doctors have no idea why it started, his condition has left him confined to a specially designed wheelchair, unable to stand on his feet or move his arms or head. Luckily, his brain has not been affected.
The family have launched a fundraiser on GoFundMe which has already raised £14,449, to help pay for specialist equipment including a stair-climbing chair and adapted vehicle. Peter, a signal engineer for Transport for London, said that pretty much every neurologist in London – and if not the UK – knows about Jude’s case.
Jude’s symptoms were not obvious to begin with, but Peter and Emma said that with hindsight, there were warning signs. They noticed that Jude was short of breath and not snorkelling or swimming in the pool while on holiday in Morocco in late September 2022. After returning home, he was prescribed an inhaler and referred to an ear, nose and throat specialist at Medway Maritime Hospital. He was given the ‘all clear’ after doctors carried out an endoscopy.
Motor neuropathy is caused by damage to the nerves that control movement. Symptoms vary from person to person, but can include twitching and muscle cramps, muscle weakness or paralysis, and difficulty lifting up the front part of the foot and toes. While diabetes can cause some forms of neuropathy, the collection of symptoms is also associated with a long list of other possible underlying health conditions and lifestyle factors, including some cancers or as the result of excessive drinking over a number of years.
Jude’s parents noticed that his right arm was getting weaker when they rewatched videos taken in November 2022. When he started using his left arm to lift his right while getting dressed, they knew something was wrong. He went back to see the GP who carried out blood tests but again the results showed no irregularities or infections. A week before his appointment to see another specialist, Jude was rushed to A&E after choking on some Pringles.
The family are afraid Jude’s condition could progress or that his little sister, Elodie, two, may also be affected. But Peter says his son is ‘still in there’ and he still wants to run around the garden, kick a football, ride his bike and swim in the sea.
Jude Keil, a 10-year-old boy from Bobbing, Kent, has been hospitalized for more than 300 days with no answers. It all began when Jude started experiencing difficulty breathing and complained to his parents that he was feeling tired. As his symptoms escalated, his parents took him to the Medway Maritime Hospital in early February 2023.
That's when Jude uttered his last words - "I'm tired" - to his father, Peter Keil. It turns out that Jude was having trouble clearing carbon dioxide from his lungs, and was essentially suffocating. He soon lost consciousness and was put in a medically induced coma.
Since then, Jude has been diagnosed with an unknown type of motor polyneuropathy. While this is a general term used to describe diseases that affect the nervous system, doctors still don't know what caused it. Jude is confined to a wheelchair, unable to move his arms or head, but his brain remains unaffected.
Despite their fears that Jude's condition could worsen or even affect their two-year-old daughter, Elodie, Peter and Emma Keil are determined to help their son. They set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for specialist equipment, such as a stair-climbing chair and an adapted vehicle, and have already raised £14,449.
Peter says that Jude is "still in there" despite his physical difficulties, and that he's still the same "funny, cheeky" boy who wants to go out and play. Through videos taken before Jude's hospitalization, the Keils have noticed that his right arm had been getting weaker - a symptom that was hard to detect.
Jude was taken to the hospital after choking on some Pringles a week before his specialist appointment. Peter remembers his son being petrified and says that it was then that they knew something was wrong.
Motor polyneuropathy is a condition that can be caused by a number of underlying health factors, such as diabetes and excessive drinking, or even side effects of certain medications. In Jude's case, the cause of his neuropathy remains unknown. But with the help of his family, he's now one step closer to getting the answers he needs.
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