Edmonton, Canada: Teen left blind, deaf, paralyzed by mystery illness - possibly new form of meningitis

[Emily]

The article says doctors think this may be a new form of meningitis.

http://www.globaltvedmonton.com/edmo...601/story.html

Edmonton teen left blind, deaf, paralyzed by mystery illness
Global News : Tuesday, November 08, 2011 4:52 PM

Read it on Global News: Global Edmonton | Edmonton teen left blind, deaf, paralyzed by mystery illness

EDMONTON - Seven months ago, 16-year-old Ryan King was an aspiring football player at Archbishop O'Leary High School. Athletic, outgoing and strong-willed, King seemed to have everything going for him. Weeks later, he was blind, deaf, and struggling to survive.

"I woke up and he was having some kind of seizure," says King's mother Bobbie Nelson, tearfully recalling the day her family changed forever.

On April 2, King suddenly became very ill. What was initially thought to be a flu bug quickly developed into something much more serious....

[alert]

Re: Edmonton, Canada: Teen left blind, deaf, paralyzed by mystery illness - possibly new form of meningitis

Given the paralytic symptoms, I wonder if the reference to a "new form" of meningitis is the reporter's way of reporting amoebic meningitis/encephalitis, as in several children in the US this year:

http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?p=421363

[Emily]

Re: Edmonton, Canada: Teen left blind, deaf, paralyzed by mystery illness - possibly new form of meningitis

Given the paralytic symptoms, I wonder if the reference to a "new form" of meningitis is the reporter's way of reporting amoebic meningitis/encephalitis, as in several children in the US this year:

http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/sho...d.php?p=421363

The article makes it sound like the doctors were unsure, but if the amoeba did move north at a much faster rate than expected, it could take a few cases to start looking for it. It's certainly something very rare, whatever it is.

There is another article here that mentions some hopeful improvements:
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/sport...057/story.html

A commenter posted this link that he thought had similarities:

http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/n...tis_optica.htm
NINDS Neuromyelitis Optica Information Page
Synonym(s): Devic's Syndrome

Also I remember a case or two like this:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2872802/
NMDA RECEPTOR ENCEPHALITIS MIMICKING SERONEGATIVE NEUROMYELITIS OPTICA

Hopefully the word is out on the autoimmune possibilities by now so timely testing is done if appropriate to so.