Aussie boy left unable to walk or talk after catching common illness

An eight-year-old boy who initially complained of a sore neck has now spent over a month in ICU with a condition that has doctors baffled. 

Cruez Botha-Blake, alerted his parents to his sore neck June 5 and was given a heat pack to remedy the pain. 

But four days later, Cruez was rushed to Box Hill Hospital in Melbourne's east, unable to walk, talk, or swallow. 

He was admitted to the ICU and diagnosed with influenza A induced encephalitis with encephalopathy.

This rare condition occurs when the common flu virus spreads to the brain, causing inflammation and swelling. 

'This lead to swelling of the whole brain and inflammation of the central and peripheral nervous system,' family friend Dawn Juhlin explained. 'This condition is life-threatening because it leads to seizures, confusion, hallucination, weakness and loss of sensation.'

Cruez was then transferred to Monash Children's Hospital, where he has remained for the past six weeks, experiencing almost constant pain and unable to move without assistance. 

His mother, Ilse Botha-Siligi, said that Cruez had suffered from the same rare condition when he was three years old, but had recovered in only five days.

He was able to recover to about '70 per cent of his full strength but still had little tremors, is really clumsy and lost a lot of weight'. 

Doctors are baffled as to why he is taking so long to recover this time around. 

Meanwhile, they are providing general care and giving him a cocktail of medications, including heavy painkillers, until they can reach a conclusion. 

Ilse described her son as usually being energetic and playful, who played basketball for his local club, Maroondah Magic, enjoyed pranking his five siblings, and was loved by his school friends and peers at Mooroolbark East Primary.

But now, he is mute and resigned to lying in his hospital bed and relies on a special wheelchair to go outside. 

'It is quite a shock, there's been lots of crying, lots of crying,' she said.

The distraught mother hasn't left Cruez's side for three weeks because he becomes distressed and starts crying, the only sound he can make, whenever she leaves. 

'Sometimes being next to him isn't enough, and I have to climb into bed and cuddle him to calm him down,' she added. 

Cruez can only leave his hospital bed for 30 minutes at a time after being 'hoisted' by staff into a wheelchair, before becoming exhausted and needing to sleep again. 

He has been ordered to stay in a 'low-stimulation' environment as much as possible to promote sleep and 'gentle brain recovery.' 

'We need to find some type of diagnosis or some because my gut is telling me that there's an underlying medical issue,' she said.

'Because what are the chances of the same thing happening to the same person within five years?'

Ilse still holds out hope for her son to recover and return to some sense of normality.

'One of the things that really got to me happened about two weeks ago when one of the hospital staff - and she had the most beautiful intentions - asked me which special needs school Cruez goes to,' she said. 

'I think that hit me because this cannot be his new reality, I refuse to accept that.'

Due to Cruez's treatment requirements, there is a strict no-guest policy, except for his mother, five siblings, and stepfather Martin, who visit him 3-4 times a week. 

With Ilse staying by her son's side, Martin has taken indefinite unpaid leave from his job to care for Cruez's siblings, leaving the family without an income.