Kamal Ghorui
A 52-year-old mother was forced to have her arm amputated just days after medical staff dismissed the darkening of her hand as bruising, and even suggested it could be newspaper ink, before she later died. Lorraine Pettie, a former chef and mother, first noticed the fingers on her right hand changing colour in October. At the time, she believed the marks might be bruising caused by finger-prick testing for her diabetes. But the discolouration quickly worsened, spreading from her fingers across her hand. Lorraine attended urgent care at an Edinburgh hospital, where her daughter, Nadia Pettie, says staff questioned whether the staining could be ink transferred from old newspapers. Nadia, 31, told LADbible that her mother did not read newspapers, adding that X-rays showed no broken bones and clinicians concluded the issue was bruising. “When we went to the Western General, a nurse in minor injuries said, ‘have you been looking at newspapers because it looks like ink on your fingers’,” Nadia said. “They said ‘it’s like you’ve been holding onto an old newspaper and the ink has come off onto your fingers’.” After the scans showed no fractures, Lorraine was sent home. Nadia said: “As soon as they looked at the X-ray and saw there were no broken bones, they weren’t really interested.” But the discolouration continued to spread. When Lorraine was taken to another hospital, doctors confirmed her hand was necrotic, meaning the tissue had died due to a lack of blood supply, caused by a blood clot. According to NHS guidance, necrosis can cause tissue to turn dark brown or black as circulation fails. Lorraine was rushed into surgery at the Royal Infirmary, where doctors attempted to remove the clot obstructing blood flow to her arm. She was later transferred to St John’s Hospital in Livingston, where surgeons amputated her right arm after discovering the necrosis had spread internally.
Lorraine Pettie sadly died in her sleep on 28 December/ Image: (Kennedy News and Media)
Her sister, Alexis Pettie, said the change in Lorraine’s condition had been rapid and frightening. “On October 18 it started spreading up her fingers onto her hand,” she said, describing it as resembling frostbite. “Blood didn’t flow back into her arm. They have no idea what actually caused the clot. We don’t have any answers as to why that clot happened.” Lorraine spent around a month in hospital before being discharged home, but her health continued to deteriorate. She died in her sleep on 28 December. Her family were later told the cause of death was heart disease, diabetes and pneumonia, but they believe the amputation marked a turning point, with Alexis suggesting that ‘she just didn’t have the fight anymore’. “We were told her body was just one massive infection,” Alexis said. “I’m astounded they missed it. She went home and she just got worse. It kept creeping up her hand.” Nadia said her mother had been a “germ-freak” who did not read newspapers or books, and believes earlier intervention could have changed the outcome. “If they had taken it seriously, my mum wouldn’t have needed to have her whole arm cut off,” she said. “It disgusts me. Her arm could’ve been saved. My mum was my everything.” She added: “We might’ve had that little bit longer with my mum because it wasn’t until her amputation that her health really deteriorated even more. I don’t want someone else to go through the heartache and pain that me and my family went through.” A spokesperson for NHS Lothian said: “We extend our deepest condolences to the family of Ms Pettie. We welcome the family’s decision to get in contact with us in the last couple of days and we will discuss with them directly.”
