While COVID-19 has dominated the news cycle for the last 60 days or so, reading between the lines reveals a host of other health issues that we should be aware of, including mold-related illness. From a strictly news perspective, here’s what’s happening across the nation with respect to some of the dangers mold presents in our daily lives: In Seattle, Wash., an award-winning children’s hospital that waged a years-long battle to contain an Aspergillus mold outbreak, was recently sued by the family of a seven-month-old boy who is fending off a mold infection after open-heart surgery. As reported by The Seattle Times last week (see: Mold found in baby’s heart after surgery; family suing Seattle Children’s hospital), the hospital closed its operating rooms in March of 2019, after Aspergillus infections were attributed to gaps in the walls of operating rooms and in the array of air filters that serve them. […]
Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome
Last year, we wrote about mold outbreaks at the MacDill Air Force Base and the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center. (See our previous post, “Responding to the Mold Outbreak at VA Bay Pines Center.”) Just this month, Stars and Stripes and the Tampa Bay Times reported that five military families have since filed a federal class-action lawsuit “against owners and managers of private housing at MacDill Air Force Base, alleging years of negligence in persistent problems with mold throughout the buildings.” The lawsuit claims that “the Michaels Organization, the private company responsible for managing the on-base housing at MacDill, knew the houses there had mold and did not protect the health and safety of service members and their families.” In one case, Jason Genrich, a chief warrant officer in the Army, developed chest pains, mood swings, dizziness, and fatigue within five months of moving into military housing at MacDill.
Most residents along Florida’s Gulf Coast are well aware of the phenomenon known as red tide. Just recently, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported that the red tide organism — Karenia brevis — was measured at bloom concentrations in southwest Florida. And in early October, it was recorded at background levels in northwest Florida. Red tide blooms are not an uncommon sight for those of us who reside in Tampa. Such blooms occurred over the course of 14 months in 2017-2018 and were apparent in 17 months in 2005-2006. A severe bloom that occurred in 2012-2013 killed hundreds of manatees and scores of other marine life. Significant blooms also occurred in 2015-2016 and 2016-2017, with smaller blooms in other years. And it’s not a recent phenomenon. Written descriptions of red tide events in the Gulf of Mexico reach back to the era of Spanish exploration in the New
Meet the Patient is a new series we are launching on the BioDesign Wellness Center blog to present case studies of actual patients we have treated over the years or are currently treating. Our hope is these stories resonate with anyone who is or knows of someone struggling with a similar health condition and has not received an accurate diagnosis or effective medical treatment — especially those who may be close to giving up hope of ever feeling healthy, energetic, and happy again. Our objective with these case studies is to restore a belief that happiness — a major step toward optimizing health and fitness — is attainable, even by those who are chronically ill. Please note that in some cases (not all) names and certain other details may be changed or omitted to ensure patient-doctor confidentiality, but specifics about conditions, diagnoses, and treatments are accurate. Our case studies are based
Approximately 30.8 million Americans, representing 9.5 percent of the adult population, suffer from chronic sinusitis — inflammation of the nasal passages that lasts for at least three months despite treatment. And in Tampa, where chronic nasal issues are rampant, residents are similarly at risk. Symptoms include the following: Nasal congestion Thick, discolored discharge from the nose or throat Post-nasal drip Pain, tenderness, and swelling around the eyes, cheeks, nose, and forehead Impaired or lost sense of smell Persistent cough Symptoms may also include these: Earache Aching teeth or upper jaw Sore throat Bad breath Fatigue Many people who suffer from chronic sinusitis try to
Many people who suffer chronic pain and fatigue find little to no relief from conventional medicine. At best, they are given what we refer to as a “waste-basket diagnosis,” such as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia, or depression. Worse yet, the doctor runs numerous tests and explains that all the results came back normal — the implication being that the symptoms are all in the patient’s head. The problem with these waste-basket diagnoses is that they are unscientific. Conventional medicine has no test for chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, or depression. Doctors arrive at these diagnoses in one of two ways: They look at a cluster of symptoms and assign it a label. If the patient complains primarily of pain, he or she is likely to be diagnosed as having fibromyalgia. If fatigue is the primary complaint, the patient is diagnosed as having chronic fatigue syndrome. If the symptoms are mood-related,