Age: 82.0
Sex: F
Vaccine: COVID19
Symptoms: Feeling abnormal, Gait disturbance, Infection, Laboratory test abnormal, Laparoscopic surgery
Clinical narrative: On July 24, 2021, three days after her vaccination, pt fell to the floor in the family room of her home and was unable to sit up or stand.  Paramedics took her to the emergency room at. She was given a series of tests that revealed a major infection - possibly life threatening.  The doctors could not immediately identify the source of the infection.     She was admitted to the hospital, and tests were continued throughout the night.   Early the next morning, an MRI scan revealed that her appendix was about to burst.  She was rushed into surgery where her appendix was removed via laparoscopic surgery.   (Continued on continuation page)The diagnosis of appendicitis was very surprising.  She never had any abdominal pain from the appendicitis.  People her age seldom get appendicitis, but there have been some reports of a slight increase in appendicitis after receiving a Covid19 vaccination.   Her primary care physician did not know if her appendicitis was caused by the vaccination, but other physicians have said that coming down with appendicitis 3 days after her vaccination was too much of a coincidence to not blame the vaccination. After 9 days in the hospital, she was transferred on July 2, 2021, to a Post-Acute Care facility.  At this point her infection had been cured, but she had difficulty walking, even with the aid of a walker. She also suffered from urinary and bowel incontinence.  Unfortunately, a resident in a nearby room, came down with the Delta variant of Covid19.  Therefore, the entire facility was placed in lockdown. Pt had a miserable time at the facility.  During the lockdown, patients were confined to their rooms.  No visitors were allowed.  The facility became vastly understaffed. and members of the staff were unable to attend to her urinary and bowel movement needs in a timely manner.  The food service deteriorated to the point where many meals were almost inedible. The one good thing about her stay at the facility was the physical therapy staff.  They were excellent. Although they could not take patients to their physical therapy gym, they worked with pt in her room.  Her ability to walk around with the aid of a walker improved significantly. Several things needed to be done to prepare for her return home.  Toilet handlebars and a raised toilet seat were added to the bathroom.  It was also necessary to prepare a first-floor room with sleeping facilities for her. This involved a clearing out the room and adding a wardrobe closet, a set of drawers, lamps, and a new bed and mattress. Pts insurance ended its partial coverage partial coverage of nursing home expenses ended after 3 weeks, and she had to pay the entire cost of her final week there.  However, she did get her second dose of the Covid19 vaccine during that extra week. She returned home on July 31, 2021.  She felt like she had just returned to Earth from outer space.  At this point, she no longer had the incontinence problem and could walk reasonably well with a walker. Today she can do some limited walking without the walker.