UFC lightweight Dustin Poirier is in hospital battling a staph infection.
Fan favourite Poirier tweeted a picture of himself on a drip to his Instagram on Sunday – leading to a flurry of concerns for his well-being.
REUTERSDustin Poirier is in hospital battling a staph infection[/caption]
INSTAGRAM@DUSTINPOIRIERPoirier posted a photo of himself on a drip to his Instagram story[/caption]
TWITTERHe’s since revealed he’s spent two days in the hospital[/caption]
And it’s since been revealed he’s dealing with a bout of staph infection – which is caused by staphylococcus bacteria.
The former interim UFC lightweight champion, 33, has been hospitalised for two days with the potentially deadly and flesh-eating infection.
He tweeted: “Going on day 2 in the hospital sh*ts getting serious.”
But The Diamond seems to be in good spirits as he’s been engaging with a number of fans on Twitter.
Staph bacteria infections are not normally serious and result in minor skin irritations.
But they can be fatal if enters a person’s bloodstream, bones, joints, heart or lungs.
It’s not uncommon for mixed martial arts fighters to get staph infections due to the intense grappling they perform on a regular basis.
In fact, several fighters high-profile fighters have been struck down by staph – including former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker.
JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET A FREE £10 BONUS WITH 100s OF GAMES TO PLAY AND NO DEPOSIT REQUIRED (Ts&Cs apply)
Whittaker contracted an infection in his stomach in February 2018 and ended up being sidelined for a year.
Ilir Latifi recently competed with a staph infection in his UFC Vegas 61 clash with Aleksei Oleinik and received a temporary suspension from the Nevada Athletic Commission.
The worst case of staph infection was undoubtedly suffered by the late Kevin Randleman, who had a history of contracting them.
Randleman’s bout of the infection in 2007 left him with two huge HOLES under his armpit.
Former UFC middleweight champ Robert Whittaker caught a staph infection in 2018Getty
He was in critical condition for two weeks but eventually made a full recovery.
There is no suggestion Poirier’s bout with illness is in any way life-threatening.