Suffering from severe sinusitis, the girl had to have half of her skull removed.

Natasha Santana, 26, is a martial arts instructor who lives with her husband and son in San Jose, California. In 2021, she suffered from sinusitis a total of five times, according to the Daily Mail (UK).

Sinusitis that spread to the brain caused her to experience severe symptoms such as headaches, vomiting, and irritability.

The first four times she had sinusitis, she recovered thanks to antibiotic treatment. But on the fifth time, things took a turn for the worse. The antibiotics seemed to have no effect anymore. Severe symptoms began to appear. She experienced persistent vomiting, severe headaches, mood swings, and frequent, unwarranted, and unusual anger.

When she was hospitalized, doctors ordered a brain scan and performed several tests. They found that the infection in her nasal sinuses, which had become uncontrollable, had spread to her brain. Because the nasal sinuses are only separated from the brain by a small group of bones, severe inflammation can spread to the brain. Furthermore, a abscess had formed in her brain, increasing intracranial pressure and threatening her life.

Subsequent tests also revealed that Santana had a genetic mutation that prevented her body from producing a protein that activates the immune system. This meant the antibiotics she was taking were unable to kill the infection in her sinuses.

To treat her condition, doctors performed emergency surgery to remove half of Santana's skull from the top of her head. This portion of the skull, larger than a hand, was located on the left side of her head, extending from the top of her head to her left ear.

Removing this portion of the skull allowed the doctors to get a clearer view of the infection in the patient's brain. The surgical team then drained the pus and removed the infected and damaged surrounding tissue.

Because the left side of her skull was missing, Santana's brain was located beneath her scalp. For five months after the surgery, her doctors instructed her to wear a helmet regularly to protect this very vulnerable area of ​​her head.

"I wore a helmet and tried my best not to leave the house. I only went out to the doctor's and only about five times to other places, like the shopping mall," Santana recounted.

Because she no longer had a skull, her head was extremely fragile. She suffered from a constant fear that someone would hit her head. It took the woman a year to overcome this psychological trauma.

Currently, with the support of her husband, who is also a martial arts coach, and her own efforts, Santana has trained and returned to coaching. However, she will not be able to perform complex moves such as somersaults or grappling, according to the Daily Mail .

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