Age: 42.0
Sex: F
Vaccine: TD
Symptoms: Nausea, Odynophagia, Oral mucosal eruption, Paraesthesia, Pharyngeal oedema
Clinical narrative: I am a veterinary technician and unfortunately have received cat and dog bites over the years. Due to my ignorance regarding over vaccination, I had received three tetanus/diphtheria shots within 7 to 8 years of each other. All of these shots were given at the emergency room. The information I'm providing pertains to my illness following a shot given on 07/25/04. Prior to this 6 month illness I had been extremely healthy. Approximately 2 weeks after vaccination the mucous membrane of my lower lip changed in texture, becoming rough and red. I had a few splits in this tissue, which healed with salt water rinses, but the texture and color remained unchanged. At about the same time my left foot started to tingle and I had sporadic episodes of numbness, in this foot. On 8/14/04, I was starting a week of vacation, when I experienced a day of extreme fatigue. the fatigue subsided but over the next week my throat and tonsils became inflamed and the roof of my mouth and soft pallet turned a creamy white color. My throat was not painful. I also had a white pustule form on my left tonsil. I thought I may have picked up a virus so I waited until 09/03/04 to seek medical attention. I had a strep test which was negative and was given Allegra because they thought it was an allergy related problem. I've never had a real allergy problem. On 09/09/04 I had a bacterial and fungal culture of my throat which was negative. My symptoms went unchanged after two weeks on the Allegra so I was sent for a sinus CT on 09/20/04, it was negative. On 09/26/04, I went to the emergency room because I had 3 days of nausea and my legs from the knees down felt like they were going to sleep. I was told to take Sudafed and Benadryl. On 9/29/04, I started having tingling in my hands at night and I started having tightness in the back of my neck and shoulders. On 9/30/04, swallowing was a little harder like my my throat was thickened. On 10/1/04, I saw an ENT specialist. He said my rhetinoids were slightly swollen and put me on Augmentin 1000mg Bid x 3 days then 800mg Bid x 10 days. The next day the swelling had gone down some and my throat felt a little better. The following day the white pustule was gone. My recheck on 10/12/04 showed swelling hand gone down but not completely away. I was told to finish the medications, wait a few days and call if things got worse. The swelling hadn't completely resolved but things didn't get worse until 11/19/04, when I had more throat swelling in the area of my thyroid. It felt like I was swallowing past a bump. My doctor had another CBC performed and a Thyroid test which were both normal. I also had a thyroid ultrasound which was normal and only showed a few very small cysts; considered insignificant at that time. I was put on Flonase. By 11/26/04 my condition was not resolving and now I was experiencing extreme pressure in the sides of my head and sporadic altered hearing. I still had the tingling and numbness in my hands, legs and feet. On 12/3/04 I had neck stiffness leading to pain up the back of my head and nausea. I was given samples of Mobic Meloxicam, Zyrtec and Flexeril, by 12/7/04 it seemed to relieve some of the pressure and inflammation but didn't resolve the problem. On 12/8/04, I saw a physical therapist who sent me for cervical and lumbar x-rays. They showed nothing unusual, mild age related degenerative disc disease. Nerve function testing was set for 12/15/04. On 12/11/04 I had back spasms, sporadic tingling in odd places; across my back and at my diaphragm, up the front of my legs and across back of my head. My nerve function test on the 15th were fairly normal, mild carpal tunnel in both hands considered normal for my age. No Pinched nerve in my back. On 12/20/04, I finally ask my doctor for a prescription of Zithromax. I was concerned about the slight positive Bartonella test mostly because of the CNS problems as well as the fact that I still felt I had been infected or affected by the tetanus diphtheria vaccine. In the veterinary field we use Zithromax on cats with Bartonella and I had read about its use against clostridium. I ended up taking the Zithromax for 15 days. Four days into the medication I started to feel much better. By the 8th day the spasms, pressure and inflammation had gone down considerably. My tonsils had shrunk way down and the milky whiteness in the roof of my mouth seemed to be disappearing and the pink was coming back. I still had the tingling in my extremities but that was lessening as well. On 01/05/05, I changed my primary care physician. My course of Zithromax ended on the 4th. I am pleased with the progress I made on the Zithromax although I still feel my body is fighting off an infection. The problems I still have are minor occasional leg fatigue, slight pressure in the sides and back of my head and slight whiteness in the roof of my mouth. Some days I feel fine and others I'm slightly off. I'm off all of the medications I was given to try except the Flonase. I have an appointment with my new primary care physician, on 01/17/05, I will discuss with her the possible use of another antibiotic, such as erythromycin, which I have read is used in diphtheria cases, to see if this might finish off this fight my body is struggling with. I have read about vaccine reactions and sometimes side effects just take time to go away and if that's the case I can live with where I'm at, at this time. Nothing that anyone can tell me will make me believe this wasn't vaccine related. The doctors look at you like you've fallen off your rocker. They would never admit that it could be vaccine related and most will ignore the fact that you've even spoken such a thought. I was in great health before the vaccine on 7/25/04. All the testing I have had done has been normal or negative and yet the antibiotic helped greatly. I don't expect anything from this letter except that maybe someone will read it and prevent themselves from going through what I have experienced over the last five months. I most certainly will never have another Tetanus/Diphtheria vaccine as long as I live.