Shelby boy faces more amputations while battling rare COVID-19 condition.

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Shelby boy faces more amputations while battling rare COVID-19 condition.

By Allison Scarbrough, Editor.

SHELBY — Dae’Shun Jamison, 10, of Shelby has been diagnosed with a rare condition of COVID-19 which led to the amputation of his right leg, and soon his left leg and both hands will also be removed.

The 10-year-old started getting headaches and then a high fever, and his mother immediately took him to the hospital, where he was admitted Dec. 21. Doctors diagnosed him with multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C).

Dae’Shun has been treated at Helen Devos Children’s Hospital in Grand Rapids, where doctors told the family his case is the worst in the state that they have seen. 

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Of the 5,000 pediatric patients at Spectrum that have received positive COVID test results just 21 patients have been treated for MIS-C. 

Symptoms can include a fever, redness in the eyes, a rash, inflammation of the lymph nodes, vomiting, or diarrhea. The exact reason why a handful of patients suffer from the condition is unknown.

The condition typically develops two to eight weeks post-infection. In Dae’Shun’s case, he had no symptoms of COVID-19, and the MIS-C symptoms developed following the infection period of two weeks. 

The condition prompted a build-up of fluid in Dae’Shun’s legs. Doctors tried to save them but told the family he had no movement or feeling left in them. 

MIS-C is an overactive immune response that leads to inflammation of various body parts, such as the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, or gastrointestinal organs. 

The CDC notes that although it’s unknown what causes MIS-C, many children who are diagnosed with it either had COVID-19 or were in proximity with someone who had the virus. More than 70 percent of the cases occurred in Latino or black children, with the average age of children affected being 8 years old, according to the CDC.

Dae’Shun had to be put on a ventilator on Christmas Eve. He was also put on dialysis and hooked up to an ECMO machine, which added oxygen to his blood and pumped it through his body. 

While intubated, Dae’Shun lost circulation in his hands and feet and his legs swelled up with fluids. The damage was so severe that he had to have his right leg amputated because he had no movement or feeling left in it. His left leg and both hands will also be removed. The procedure is scheduled for Feb. 22. 

Dae’Shun’s mother, Brittney Autman, is hopeful her son will one day walk again with prosthetics. 

There is a GoFundMe set up to help the family, and if you would like to donate, click HERE.

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Autman has been updating her son’s battle with the disease on the GoFundMe that she launched because she is unable to work while she’s at the hospital and caring for her 7-year-old daughter De’iijah.  

Strong community support has led to nearly $60,000 in donations. 

He was moved to Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital in Grand Rapids, Feb. 6, following his first amputation procedure, Dae’Shun’s mother wrote. 

Autman said her son is autistic, which further complicates matters because he struggles to understand what is happening to him. “Because of his autism, he has no clue on what’s going to happen,” she wrote.

“Dae’Shun completely broke down in tears which affected me in so many ways, I can’t believe this is really happening to my baby,” Autman wrote.  

“I am struggling with this so much please keep the prayers coming,” she wrote. 

Dae’Shun is a fourth grader at New Era Elementary School, said Kara Vander Weele, who is the principal at both New Era and Thomas Read elementary schools.

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School staff took a collection to provide his family with gas money, gift cards, groceries and other supplies, said Vander Weele. Deliveries by local families were made to the porch of the family home, which is located close to Thomas Read Elementary School, she said, and now families are making deliveries to the hospital as Dae’Shun’s family is “basically living in Grand Rapids.” They’re bringing school work for his younger sister and gift cards for the cafeteria.

The West Shore Educational School District provided a $500 grant, and Windridge Textile Printing in Shelby produced T-shirts that say “Dae’Shun Strong,” giving the school a discounted rate of $5 per shirt. The school bought the entire fourth grade a T-shirt, which features the purple Tiger school mascot, and sold 400 shirts for $10 each. More T-shirts may be made in the future, said Vander Weele. Profits from the T-shirt sales go directly to the family.

“We’ve kept it very general,” said Vander Weele regarding how staff members explain to the children what is happening with Dae’Shun.

“We talk about the doctors doing their best to take care of him, and when he’s healthy enough, we’ll see him again,” Vander Weele said. “This is definitely a game changer for that family.”

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