Girl, 6, died of rare blood infection

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - Cheyenne Hendershot's death was the result of a rare bacterial blood infection that may have killed her in a matter of hours, the medical examiner told 24 Hour News 8 on Thursday.

The 6-year-old Marne girl died suddenly in her home Aug. 1.

Medical examiner Dr. David Start performed the autopsy and said she had an infection, which likely came as the result of a shoulder injury after Cheyenne fell off a bicycle.

The condition, Group A Beta Hemolytic Streptococcal Sepsis, is rare, Start said. The condition can be very aggressive and difficult to diagnose.

Cheyenne's family members said they took the girl to Spectrum Health the evening before she was found dead. At the medical center, she was given some pain medication but no one mentioned anything about an infection.

Family friends told 24 Hour News 8 that Cheyenne had a fever -- an indication of infection -- but Start said records he obtained from the medical center did not indicate a fever.

The condition that killed Cheyenne is rare, Start added, but worth a warning to the public.

Anyone with a skin injury accompanied with a fever or redness should be seen by a doctor, he said.