Teen athlete's family believe he got herpes from wrestling
Posted: Aug 15, 2014 By myFOXDetroit.com Staff
WYANDOTTE, Mich. (WJBK) - Fourteen-year-old Wyandotte resident John Martinez says it started with a bad headache followed by a rash and then a two-day stay at children's hospital.
"It's still a little bit there," he said. "It's trying to go away from the medications."
The diagnosis - herpes simplex.
"The doctors finally came in and asked me about my sports, about wrestling and if any kids has wounds or anything," John said.
His mother Nancy Martinez said that her son may have caught it while wrestling.
"They said they tested the four boys Johnny wrestled that day," she said. "Two of them had shingles on their forehead so they taped their foreheads."
Martinez believes they too have herpes, and their lesions were not taped.
"It was on their foreheads it was like little things - nothing major," he said. "So I thought maybe it wouldn't be a problem
Martinez claims she was never warned that her son could be exposed to such a dangerous virus.
"Every year they send us a paper about what these boys can catch," she said. "They never mention this herpes simplex disease and it affects these boys for the rest of their lives.'
At 6-foot-1 and 229 pounds, John hoped wrestling or football would be his ticket for a college education - but he's not banking on it now that he's contracted herpes.
"I wanted to end up getting a scholarship for football or wrestling so I can get (school) paid for," he said. "But since now that I have this disease I can't get a scholarship now."
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/26294965/teen-athletes-family-believe-he-got-herpes-from-wrestling
Posted: Aug 15, 2014 By myFOXDetroit.com Staff
WYANDOTTE, Mich. (WJBK) - Fourteen-year-old Wyandotte resident John Martinez says it started with a bad headache followed by a rash and then a two-day stay at children's hospital.
"It's still a little bit there," he said. "It's trying to go away from the medications."
The diagnosis - herpes simplex.
"The doctors finally came in and asked me about my sports, about wrestling and if any kids has wounds or anything," John said.
His mother Nancy Martinez said that her son may have caught it while wrestling.
"They said they tested the four boys Johnny wrestled that day," she said. "Two of them had shingles on their forehead so they taped their foreheads."
Martinez believes they too have herpes, and their lesions were not taped.
"It was on their foreheads it was like little things - nothing major," he said. "So I thought maybe it wouldn't be a problem
Martinez claims she was never warned that her son could be exposed to such a dangerous virus.
"Every year they send us a paper about what these boys can catch," she said. "They never mention this herpes simplex disease and it affects these boys for the rest of their lives.'
At 6-foot-1 and 229 pounds, John hoped wrestling or football would be his ticket for a college education - but he's not banking on it now that he's contracted herpes.
"I wanted to end up getting a scholarship for football or wrestling so I can get (school) paid for," he said. "But since now that I have this disease I can't get a scholarship now."
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/26294965/teen-athletes-family-believe-he-got-herpes-from-wrestling
