Sydney mum bitten by white-tailed spider has her leg amputated at Nepean Hospital

A mother-of-five was about to start her ‘dream job’ when she was bitten on her foot by a white-tailed spider. 

Two-and-a-half months later, doctors at Nepean Hospital near Penrith, Sydney, have amputated Kristal Joseph’s left leg below the knee in a desperate bid to stop a vicious infection from spreading to the rest of her body.

The 29-year-old from Jordan Springs, in western Sydney, is too devastated from Thursday’s surgery to speak.

But her husband, Callum, told Daily Mail Australia the family are struggling to come to terms with what has happened.

‘It’s totally life-changing,’ he said. 

‘It’s taken a huge emotional, mental and physical toll on Kristal. The whole process has been such an ordeal for her and our family.’ 

Kristal, who shares three children with Callum and is a devoted mother to two step-kids from his previous relationship, was due to start working at a funeral home on March 1.

The events and arranging role was her ‘dream job’ but she was bitten by a spider a week before she was due to start.

The bite got infected and led to her going in and out of hospital as doctors struggled to treat it. 

White-tailed spiders are commonly found in homes across Australia and vary in size between 12-18mm.

Though non-venomous, their bite can cause a mild reaction, including itching and skin discolouration.

But it is still a matter of great debate whether their bite can cause severe cases of skin ulceration in humans, like the one that has stricken Kristal. 

Callum, 34, added: ‘The doctors thought the bite would go away by itself but it turned into a big blister and stated oozing.’ 

‘She had to undergo an urgent debridement a few days later. They ended up removing half of her ankle.’ 

Kristal endured 10 debridement surgeries, which involve cleaning the wound and removing infected skin, tendons and dead tissue.

She has been in and out of hospital for 12 weeks as medical staff struggled to bring the infection under control. 

But two weeks ago, doctors rang Callum at work to tell him Kristal only had 48 hours to live after she was rushed into intensive care with stage five kidney failure.

They eventually managed to stabilise her.

However, with the infection spreading to her tendons, ligaments and bones, doctors were left with no other option but to amputate to save her life. 

Callum, who works as a hire coordinator for a firm leasing industrial generators, said they have been left in the dark about why the infection has not responded to treatment. 

‘Something must have gone wrong but we don’t know what,’ he said.

‘The doctors and medical staff are trying to figure out where everything went wrong and we’re waiting on a biopsy and other test results.’

‘For some reason it takes a long time because they’ve got to grow some sort of bacteria.’ 

Callum has taken unpaid leave to remain by her side throughout her treatment, while other family members are helping look after their children. 

‘She’s on a lot of painkillers and just trying to sleep as much as she can,’ he said. 

This is not the first time Kristal has battled adversity. 

In addition to being a type one diabetic all her life, she was diagnosed with the extremely rare Perthes disease aged seven, in which the ‘ball’ in the hip joint slowly crumbles and dies from a lack of blood supply. 

She was hospitalised and bedridden for fourth months before her legs were place into broom stick casts for two years.

At 23, the disease deteriorated to the point she required a total hip replacement.

Yet, close friend Nicole Rugendyke says Kristal ‘never, ever complains’.

‘She faces these challenges with courage and composure,’ Ms Rugendyke wrote. 

‘She is always thinking of others. She never likes to draw attention to herself, make a fuss or ask for help.’

Ms Rugendyke has set up a GoFundMe page, which has so far raised over $20,000, to help with Kristal’s long road to recovery.