Sex: M
Vaccine: ANTH
Symptoms: Loss of consciousness, Panic reaction, Sleep apnoea syndrome, Speech disorder, Suicide attempt
Clinical narrative: Submitted to Docket No. 1980N-0208; 69 FR 78281, December 29, 2004 - Bacterial Vaccines & Toxoids Efficacy Review Proposal. Patient joined the military nearly 11 years ago dreaming of seeing the world and building a strong future for himself. Now he wonders if he has a future at all. Still just 29 years old, his once powerful physique is so withered and frail he must walk with a cane. His boyish looks are marred by bruises and scars, the result of the falls he takes when he unexpectedly passes out. It's gotten so bag he's resorted to wearing a hockey helmet around the house. Life for him consists of sitting and eating. He sleeps poorly, lives in dread of moments when he slips into delirium, he stumbles over words, his body fails him daily. He has become, he says, a prisoner in his own body. But unlike sufferers of the mysterious Gulf War illness, whose doctors can't pinpoint a specific cause for their maladies, he has medical problems linked to the anthrax vaccine. Even on good days, it's hard just to leave the house. Mildly hot weather can make him pass out. Once an amateur weightlifting competitor, he now gets winded pulling his wheelchair out of his pickup truck. A fresh red scar extending above his right eye reminds him why today is a bad day. The injury happened two nights ago, probably from a fall. He can't remember exactly what happened - a common occurrence these days. His wife said she woke up in the morning to find her husband's face caked with dry blood and his right eye swollen shut. A trip to the emergency room revealed he'd suffered a concussion too. His good days have been few and far between since he received his fourth anthrax vaccination in September 1999, then same month he was married. Three months later, he began suffering from fatigue, sores on his head, tunnel vision and his first blackouts. To date, he's blacked out more than 700 times. His symptoms now include bouts of delirium, panic attacks, explosive and unexpected loss of bowel control, low blood pressure, depression, memory loss, cognitive difficulties, and chronic fatigue. He said he also suffers from sleep apnea, which causes him to stop breathing in his sleep up to 60 times an hour. So he must sleep with an electronic device over his nose that senses when he stops breathing and forces air in his lungs. Then there are the side effects of the many medications he takes to control his primary medical problems. His wife said that a steroid her husband takes to elevate his blood pressure has rendered him impotent now, and eventually he'll become sterile. After the fourth shot, his health deteriorated so rapidly that he soon was unable to do his job. He spent most work days behind a desk because his co-workers feared he'd pass out on the job and get seriously hurt. Some days he fells like he's getting better, and some days he feels like he's getting worse. he's come close to suicide, but lacked the guts to pull the trigger. He's stopped taking his medication hoping it will end. He desperately wants a job but, on most days, his condition allows him to leave the house only for short periods. And the smells of cleaners, colognes, paint, and other items that he might encounter in public places can trigger his bouts of delirium. Nights are particularly stressful for his wife and her in-laws because he sleeps only one to four hours at night. When he gets up, he might pass out or slip into delirium and wander outside like a sleepwalker while the family sleeps on unknowingly.