Coronavirus-infected man recovers after 50 days on ventilator: report

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A British man who had reportedly been on a ventilator for 50 days after contracting the novel coronavirus has made a miraculous recovery, according to a report.

Steve Banks, 44, a bodybuilder from Essex, first noticed signs he was falling ill on March 17 when he developed a fever and cough.

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Just over a week later on March 25, he was rushed to the hospital when he began struggling to breathe, later being diagnosed with a COVID-19 infection. Not long after, he was reportedly intubated and placed in an induced coma. At the time, he was given a low chance of survival, South West News Service reported.

Steve Banks in the hospital. (SWNS)

While in a coma, Banks — who was first taken to Basildon Hospital before he was transferred to Chelmsford two days later — reportedly suffered from heart, kidney and respiratory failure, and a sepsis infection.

More than seven weeks later, however, Banks made a seemingly impossible recovery, waking from a coma to the sound of applause from nurses and doctors, he claimed.

“When I woke up I was in a different hospital, I couldn't speak, and there were lots of nurses around me clapping. It was quite a surreal moment,” he told SWNS.

Banks, who is a father of two and has no underlying health issues, says he was physically active prior to falling ill.

Steve Banks was reportedly given a low chance of survival. (SWNS)

"I was a very active person, I tried to look after myself. I was an avid gym-goer and I lifted a lot of weights. But this absolutely battered me, when I woke up I looked in the mirror and didn't recognize myself,” Banks told SWNS.

The 44-year-old was released from the hospital on May 20 and has been recovering at home ever since. He said he is still getting his strength back.

“It’s difficult at the moment but I am getting movement back slowly,” he said. “I cannot walk unaided and have lost so much muscle mass… [I am] half the man I was before.”

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Even so, Banks is thankful to be alive, as his wife and children were reportedly preparing for a funeral before he turned a corner for the better.

"Then to find out how close I came to saying goodbye, it was very shocking, there [are] still things I don't know yet,” he said. “Everyone I speak to says it is a miracle that I am alive."