Curtis Benttine of St. Ansgar says it started like the flu on March 21st. By that evening, his left leg was swollen, red and itchy. He was immediately sent to University Hospitals in Iowa City, where that night surgeons removed 12 to 16 pounds of infected tissue from his leg. It some cases, it can cause death within 18 hours.
Immediate treatment is crucial.
Centers for Disease Control doctors say there were 600 cases of the disease in the U-S in 1999, the latest year the figures are available. Benttine, who's a truck driver, will return to University Hospitals next week for a checkup. Copyright 2001 by The Associated Press . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.