Vicki Gunvalson of ‘Real Housewives’ Survived a ‘Deadly’ Health Scare

Former “The Real Housewives of Orange County” star Vicki Gunvalson, 62, disclosed that a misdiagnosis of a sinus infection almost cost her life, as it was actually pneumonia and severe sepsis.

The businesswoman recounted her terrifying experience on her podcast “My Friend, My Soulmate, My Podcast.” Gunvalson revealed she had episodes of amnesia and stroke-like symptoms before being accurately diagnosed.

“I said, ‘Did I hear this right that I had a 10 to 20 percent survival chance?'” Gunvalson shared with her co-host Christian Gray Snow and partner Michael Smith on the podcast. She quoted the medical professional who answered, “‘Yes, the sepsis that went through your body is deadly, and you survived it. Now, you’re going to be okay, but it will take some time.'”

Gunvalson received antibiotics and steroids for several days but mentioned still feeling weak and short on energy.

“So I have pneumonia, which I’ve never had before. My right lung is pretty compacted with junk,” Gunvalson expressed emotionally. “I’m having a hard time getting it up. That’s my biggest issue.”

Gunvalson described the frightening moments leading to her accurate diagnosis. On a Thursday, she was at a hair salon and experienced about an hour or two she does not remember. Olivia, Michael Smith’s daughter, found Gunvalson speaking gibberish with a client in her office.

“I had a client coming in, and she said I was talking gibberish and I wrote an email that didn’t make any sense,” Gunvalson recollected.

The client, a retired ER physician, alerted Olivia that Gunvalson might be having a stroke. Consequently, Gunvalson was taken to a hospital but was wrongly diagnosed with a sinus infection and sent home. Later, Smith arrived at Gunvalson’s home and found her unconscious in a bathtub filled with water.

“One of the scariest things for me was when I walked in; Vicki decided she wanted to take a bath. So she’s in the bathtub with water, and I walk in, and she’s pretty much passed out,” Smith described. “So I grabbed her, that was scary. I pulled her out of the water and put her in bed.”

After sleeping for nearly 14 hours, Smith took Gunvalson back to the hospital, where she finally received the proper diagnosis and treatment.

Sepsis is a severe condition that originates from a bacterial infection, such as pneumonia, a skin infection, a gastrointestinal infection, or a UTI. When the infection spreads through the bloodstream, it generates symptoms like fever, chills, low blood pressure, elevated heart rate, rapid breathing, confusion, and disorientation.

Dr. Robert Glatter, an emergency physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, explained to USA TODAY that sepsis triggers an overreaction from the body, where inflammatory compounds meant to fight the infection also damage organs such as the kidney, lungs, heart, or brain.

While most people recover from mild sepsis, the Mayo Clinic notes that the mortality rate for septic shock is about 30 percent to 40 percent.

Contributing: Adrianna Rodriguez

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ‘Real Housewives’ alum Vicki Gunvalson says she survived ‘deadly’ health scare, misdiagnosis

Source: USA TODAY