Victim of flesh-eating bacteria leaves Georgia hospital

A woman who caught a flesh-eating bug is surprising doctors with her progress after having her left leg, right foot and hands amputated.

Aimee Copeland, 24, from Georgia, was diagnosed with necrotising fasciitis after suffering a deep cut in May when she fell from a broken zip-wire along the Tallapoosa River in Georgia.

The bacterial infection emits toxins that cut off blood flow to parts of the body. It can go on to destroy muscle, fat and skin tissue.

Ms Copeland, a psychology student, left hospital yesterday for a clinic where she will learn to use a wheelchair after her speedy recovery defied her doctors' prognosis. Her father, Andy, said she had been given a slim chance of survival. She spent weeks sedated and breathing with a respirator while undergoing amputations and skin grafts to replace large areas of infected skin.

"She's a very determined young lady," Mr Copeland said. "When she sets her mind to something, she achieves it."

AP