A SCHOOLGIRL almost died when her body reacted badly to a tampon.

Paige Roffey, 15, spent ten days in hospital with toxic shock syndrome, after using the tampon for just four hours.

Initially Southend Hospital doctors sent her home, misdiagnosing the problem as a virus. It was only after she collapsed in the shower at home and was rushed back to hospital, Paige and her family learned how close she came to death.

Paige’s memory of the fateful day, on July 11, remains hazy, but her mum, Sarah Lowe, recalls every agonising minute. Miss Lowe, 39, of Regent Close, Rayleigh, said: “Paige was feeling sick so we took her to Southend Hospital’s accident and emergency department.

“They said she had a virus and we took her home, but she later collapsed, so we took her back.

“They found her blood pressure was dangerously low. They said if we’d left it a much longer, she wouldn’t have made it. They were working on her for hours, pumping great bags of fluid into her.”

Doctors put Paige into a coma and transferred her to Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital, where medics said they were taking things “hour by hour”.

Miss Lowe said: “I sat beside my daughter’s bed and planned her funeral. I didn’t think she’d make it.

“We found out young people shouldn’t use tampons because they don’t have the antibodies to fight the bacteria they cause.

“Yet this isn’t widely known.Southend Hospital said it wasn’t the only case it had dealt with. Now we want to highlight this, because if it saves someone else this nightmare, it will be worth it.”

Doctors kept Paige in a coma for two days, then gradually reduced her medication, warning she might have suffered brain damage.

Miss Lowe kept a vigil beside her bed with her partner, Michael Clarke, 31. She added: “It was terrible. We just didn’t know what would happen. Her friends came to the hospital and I think that’s what brought her round in the end.

“I can’t thank them enough because I’m sure they brought her back to me, though the wonderful doctors and nurses did a fantastic job, too.”

Sweyne Park School pupil Paige was later transferred to Basildon Hospital and discharged a week later. She is now back at school, still weak, but determined to warn others.

Paige said: “I still feel ill some days, but I am getting my strength back. I just want it to be a lot more known than it is.”

A spokesman for Proctor and Gamble, maker of Tampax, the product Paige used, said: “We are glad to hear Paige is making a good recovery.

“We are looking into the case, but cannot make any comment as our investigations are still under way.”