Karate student who thought soreness was due to intense class had deadly disease that turned pee to ‘cola’

A karate student just thought she was feeling sore due to an intense class but later discovered she actually had a deadly disease.

Gemma Underwood had been to her regular class on 28 March when she woke up and brushed off the soreness as she says she'd often experience delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).

But another day later and the 41-year-old couldn’t move her upper body, with severe pain in her shoulders and arms preventing her from getting out of bed.

The mental health ward manager said her arms ballooned as the muscles were tight.

"I thought I had just over done it a bit at karate but the pain was disproportionate to the workout,” she added.

And when she noticed her pee ‘looked like cola’, Underwood was rushed to A&E.

Gemma just thought it was due to the intensity of class. (Kennedy News and Media)

“I looked online to see if this was a symptom of any condition, it quickly alerted me to rhabdomyolysis,” she explained.

"It's something that can happen to anyone and what doctors said was that I wasn't hydrated enough while doing an intense workout. I should have been drinking more water before.”

Underwood then panicked as it ‘can be life-threatening’ but being ‘very scared’ gave her the motivation to go to hospital ‘because obviously I didn’t want to die’.

Blood tests confirmed she had rhabdomyolysis. The NHS says this potentially life-threatening condition is caused by the rapid breakdown of damaged muscle with the release of the intracellular muscle contents, including myoglobin, creatine kinase and various electrolytes, into the bloodstream and extracellular space.

Rhabdomyolysis can lead to a range of complications including kidney damage, organ failure and death.

Underwood ended up in hospital for five days where she was put on IV fluid and had a catheter fitted.

Having returned home, she now has to rest and keep hydrated as she added: “They said treatment can take a few weeks or a few months depending on complications.”

Gemma was put on IV. (Kennedy News and Media)

The gym-goer is out of danger but still feels sore and has been left ‘very drained’ by the whole experience.

Underwood says she can not exercise ‘at all’ for at least three weeks as she is now warning others to make sure they stay hydrated before working out

"It's really important to know the symptoms, which are muscle pain, weak muscles and dark urine,” she added.

"Make sure you're hydrated before any workout, it doesn't matter how intense it is."

Common signs and symptoms of rhabdomyolysis include: muscle pain, weakness and stiffness, dark urine, fatigue, nausea and vomiting and confusion.