host posted on September 20, 2008 13:47
Dear Readers,
This month I am going to tell you about a very courageous woman. She presented to my clinic, not for evaluation or treatment, but to tell me her story. I guess that I was undergoing an evaluation as well. This woman had nearly died of fungal disease largely because her traditional medicine doctors never considered it. She wanted to know if I would be someone that she could refer her friends or colleagues to if they developed similar problems.
With that said, I must give this disclaimer: This case study is for educational purposes only. I have talked with the individual in this presentation and I have her permission to use her name and discuss the events of her illness and treatment. I have changed her name and I have tried to avoid giving information that might identify her or where she lives and works. As her story unfolds, you will understand why I have chosen to do this. I practice integrative/alternative medicine and I often see patients with problems that tend to go unrecognized by traditional medicine. It is not my intent to criticize or denounce traditional medicine. It is also not my intent to denounce any other entities in this presentation. Most importantly, the information provided here should not be used as a substitute for an examination and/or treatment by a licensed health care provider.
Ms. September is a 50-year old, married, white female with three children. She works as a bilingual elementary school teacher. Ms. September reports that she began to “feel bad” in 2003. She noticed that she was “tired“ and she developed headaches. Her headaches progressed to migraines, which she had never had before. She had several episodes of sore throat that were diagnosed as strep throat and recurrent pneumonia. She was missing a lot of work but had a lot of sick leave she could use, as she had always been healthy up to that point. She went to her local health food store and started several supplements and vitamins in an effort to build up her immune system. She had always been careful about her diet. She also thought that some of her symptoms were due to hormonal changes since her menstrual cycles stopped in 2004.
In 2005 her symptoms worsened. She began to have temporary loss of her motor skills. Initially, it could be described as an overwhelming fatigue, which she says felt “as if all energy had been sucked out from [her] like a vacuum cleaner”. She remembers sitting on a couch when this occurred and she attempted to reach for something and was unable to move her arm. Terrified, she was taken to the emergency room. Of course, if they had found anything, her story would have ended here. They didn’t. All of her studies were “normal.” These episodes of losing motor ability began to last longer and longer. After the onset of the fatigue, she would be unable to support her own weight, walk, or use her arms. The same scenario was repeated over and over. She would be taken to the emergency room, occasionally hospitalized overnight, and released the next day. She had multiple CT scans of her brain and nothing was ever found. No signs of cerebrovascular disease, (stroke), or tumors were seen. Multiple specialists saw her, all of whom shook their heads and could not give her a diagnosis. “We just don’t know what is wrong,” they would say.
Her health continued to spiral downward. She was having problems with significant weight loss, fever, chills, memory problems/brain fog, trembling, along with generalized joint and muscle pain. She had overwhelming fatigue, was unable to walk, and had become an invalid.
Ms. September was referred to a clinic specializing in the treatment of fibromyalgia. I am sure that I will be chastised for saying this, but often fibromyalgia is used as a “wastebasket” diagnosis. Ms. September had chronic fatigue, muscle and joint pain, and all of her laboratory and scans were normal, so it was a reasonable possibility. At the fibromyalgia clinic, she was told that she was not able to extract the nutrients from her diet, and that she was essentially vitamin and mineral deficient. I believe that this was very true.
Ms. September received intravenous vitamins and minerals, as well as oral supplements, but her health rapidly deteriorated. In addition to her loss of motor skills, speech difficulties, and all the other symptoms previously noted, she began to have seizure-like activity. Her husband was caring for her 24 hours a day. Ms. September and her family came to the realization that she was most likely going to die of an unknown cause. They began to record with a video camera the events of her illness, including her seizures, in hope that someone eventually would be able to determine the cause, even if it were post-mortem.
The physician at the fibromyalgia clinic referred Ms. September to an Environmental Medicine specialist. If you haven’t heard of Environmental Medicine, I am not surprised. Environmental Medicine physicians specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of illness/disease caused by exposure to environmental toxins. These specialists treat the whole person and, as such, tend to come under the label of “alternative medicine.”
[“The time has come to give the study of the responses that the living organism makes to its ]diet and[ environment the same dignity and support which is being given at present to the study of the component parts of the organism…” Rene Dubos]
Dr. EM was able to make a diagnosis. He had seen this before. Basically he told Ms. September that her environment was killing her. Ms. September was toxic from mold, (fungi). She had it in her brain, in her gastrointestinal tract, and throughout her body. Mycotoxins, which are the by-products of fungal metabolism, are some of the most toxic substances known to man. As is often the case with fungal disease in the gastrointestinal tract, Ms. September had developed multiple food allergies, was tested, and had reactions to all but eighteen foods.
Her treatment required several months of Monday-through-Friday, all day therapy. Her treatment regimen included detoxification, pituitary-adrenal support, strict rotation diet, and other treatments. Ms. September suffered from a severe Herxheimer’s reaction to treatment, which was not surprising considering her total body burden of fungi. The good news is that, by the end of December 2007, Ms. September was able to walk. It is also interesting to note that Ms. September’s menstrual cycles began again once she recovered from her fungal illness. By mid-January 2008, she was able to return to work.
When Ms. September returned to work, she noticed mold growing in her classroom. This was the same classroom she had been in for several years, but she had not noticed it before. She had only worked three days the previous year because of her illness. Other teachers also told her that there was mold in other parts of the school. Ms. September tried to talk to the school authorities about the mold in the classroom, but they reassured her that there was no problem. Unfortunately, in April 2008, Ms. September had a reoccurrence of seizure-like activity and could no longer work in that environment. Ms. September took samples of the mold in her classroom and sent it to a laboratory for evaluation. The samples revealed Cladosporium, Alternaria, and three other fungi for which I do not have a name. If you Google “Cladosporium” and “Alternaria,” multiple websites report that both of these fungi are not significant human pathogens unless you are immunocompromised. However, both Cladosporium and Alternaria have been associated with infections of the respiratory tract, sinusitis, pneumonia, severe allergic reactions, and asthma. I have to ask, how long can traditional medicine delude itself by thinking that only immunocompromised individuals get fungal infections?
As of this date, the school system continues to ignore the mold in the school and classrooms. Ms. September is doing very well and has been transferred to another school. She has been asked to sign a document stating that she will not discuss this with other teachers, students, or their families. To add insult to injury, the school system hired an outside consultant to evaluate the school for mold and they have charged Ms. September for the consultant fee, which cost several thousand dollars. Can you believe this? I couldn’t make this stuff up! Are you as horrified as I am? What about the children in this school?
So why did I share Ms. September’s story? It needed to be told and I needed to share this because I was so horrified by the situation. Ms. September brought the video I mentioned earlier to my office and I watched it with her. It was awful to see. I also wanted an opportunity to let people know about the existence of Environmental Medicine physicians and the incredible work they do.
For those of you who are interested in learning more about Environmental Medicine, you can go to www.aaemonline.org.
For information about toxins in the environment, I recommend:
Detoxify or Die by Sherry A. Rogers, M.D.
Tired or Toxic by Sherry A. Rogers, M.D.
The Impossible Child by Doris J. Rapp, M.D.
For those of you who would like to learn more about the fungal link to disease, I recommend:
The Fungal Link Vols. 1-3 by Doug Kaufmann
Blessings,
Lynn Jennings, M.D.
Champions Clinic