Posted on 05/18/2006 7:32:15 AM PDT by Larousse2
OUTBREAK! Border mystery disease: Is huge scare even real? Symptoms include persistent lesions, fibers popping out of skin, brain fog
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Posted: May 18, 2006 1:00 a.m. Eastern
By Ron Strom
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- © 2006 WorldNetDaily.com
Fibers removed from facial lesion of 3-year-old boy
A nonprofit foundation is working to drum up awareness of a border-area mystery disease that's been described as something out of a horror film, but which most mainstream doctors refuse to admit exists.
The Morgellons Research Foundation hopes to inform lawmakers and public-health officials of the disease to try to work toward an eventual cure.
As WorldNetDaily reported, Morgellons disease, a mysterious infection seemingly similar to one documented 300 years ago, is spreading throughout South Texas. While the disease has not been known to kill and doesn't appear to be contagious, it's the horrible symptoms that have some working feverishly to find an effective treatment.
The South Texas outbreak's proximity to the U.S.-Mexico border comes at a time when the issues of illegal immigration, border security and possible amnesty for over 12 million illegal aliens are being debated in the U.S.
According to the foundation's website, symptoms include skin lesions that do not heal, a crawling sensation on the surface of the skin, fatigue, cognitive difficulties and, perhaps the most disturbing, fibers popping out of the skin.
Fibers removed from facial lesion of 3-year-old boy
States the site: "[The fibers] are generally described by patients as white, but clinicians also report seeing blue, green, red, and black fibers, that fluoresce when viewed under ultraviolet light (Wood's lamp)."
Travis Wilson, a Morgellons sufferer for over a year, once called his mother in to see a fiber coming out of a lesion in his chest.
"It looked like a piece of spaghetti was sticking out about a quarter to an eighth of an inch long and it was sticking out of his chest," Lisa Wilson told the San Antonio Express-News. "I tried to pull it as hard as I could out and I could not pull it out.
"He'd have attacks and fibers would come out of his hands and fingers, white, black and sometimes red. Very, very painful," said Wilson.
A variety of other symptoms range from neurological and gastrointestinal problems to changes in skin pigment. Some people have also reported black, tarry beads of sweat.
While it's impossible to know how many Americans – who appear to be concentrated in California, Texas and Florida – suffer with the disease, the foundation says thousands with one or more symptom have registered with it.
Even so, most of the medical community don't see the disease as real, with some doctors telling patients it's all in their head.
"They (doctors) told me I was just doing this to myself, that I was nuts. So basically I stopped going to doctors because I was afraid they were going to lock me up," said sufferer Stephanie Bailey.
A big question medical professionals are wrestling with is how victims come down with the disease.
"It is difficult to say whether Morgellons is contagious," states the FAQ page on the foundation's site. "Many of our group have family members who exhibit no symptoms whatever. On the other hand, many entire families have reported becoming infected at or near the same time. At this juncture, it remains unclear if these households with multiple infected members reflect contagion, due to human-to-human transmission, or some type of mutual exposure."
The name for the disease comes from a condition involving "black hairs" emerging from the skin of children, which was documented in France in the 1600s. While experts say it is doubtful the modern-day disease is linked to the 17th century occurrences, the name was chosen, says the Morgellons Foundation, to provide "a consistent label when addressing politicians, physicians and health departments."
Mary Leitao is executive director of the Morgellons Foundation. She became involved several years ago when her 2-year-old son began exhibiting symptoms.
"The goal of the foundation is to find a cure for Morgellons disease," Leitao told WND. "The other goal is to determine the cause."
Leitao explained that Randy Wymore, Ph.D., of Oklahoma State University is working on getting research work started at the school.
"His goal is to see patients and to investigate it medically and scientifically," Leitao said.
One obstacle, she explained, is that there is not a diagnostic test for Morgellons disease. Even so, Leitao stressed that the skin lesions with fibers appears to be a symptom that links nearly all victims.
"If a physician is able to view these skin lesions under magnification, they may see these fibers," Leitao said.
Since the disease is hard to pin down, treatments vary widely.
Said Leitao: "Some physicians are treating it with pretty high-dose antibiotics. Others are using other meds, including pain medications. It can be a very uncomfortable disease for people."
Leitao said officials at the Centers for Disease Control are "not sure there's a situation going on here" so are reticent to take action.
"I don't think the CDC has heard from enough physicians, because many physicians don't recognize the illness," she said. "They just think the illness is psychosomatic."
Leitao stressed she is committed to finding a cure because of the devastation she has seen in the lives of victims. Many no longer work because of the brain fog that often accompanies the disorder.
"They can't mentally focus on tasks," she said. "They're extremely fatigued and severely depressed – in addition to the skin symptoms."
Indeed, Travis Wilson committed suicide three weeks ago.
"I knew he was going to kill himself, and there was nothing I could do to stop him," his mother said.
Dr. Adelaide Hebert of the University of Texas Health Science Center Houston is unconvinced Morgellons is an actual medical disorder.
"I think if we look at what is truly evidence-based medicine, what has been proven based on scientific fact we know we don't have a means to substantiate [Morgellons]," Hebert told KVUE-TV.
Hebert believes Morgellons exists only in the patient's mind.
"Many of these patients do have delusion of parasitosis," Hebert is quoted as saying. "It is actually not uncommon to have patients come in and describe the sensation that something is crawling on their skin."
Ginger Savely is a nurse practitioner in Austin, Texas, who has documented over 100 incidents of Morgellons.
"[Sufferers] can't get anybody to help them in the medical profession. It's just a nightmare, a living nightmare. I can't imagine any worse disease," she told the TV station.
Some doctors who do recognize the disorder as a medical disease sit on the Medical Advisory Board of the Morgellons Research Foundation.
Says Gregory V. Smith, M.D., a member of the board: "This disorder is much more common than anyone suspects. … During the course of my practice activity, I have seen numerous children … a minimum of three children daily in my office with suspicious skin lesions."
Adds another board member, William T. Harvey, M.D.: "The Morgellon's phenomenon is real. It is also clearly devastating, life-shortening and infectious. I have observed the herald lesions microscopically with their central fibers in dozens of patients."
Leitao remains hopeful for a cure – not only for her own son but countless others.
"It's a bizarre disease; I will admit to that," Leitao said. "But it's a real disease and the people need real help."
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Mystery disease hits South Texas
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Ron Strom is a news editor for WorldNetDaily.com.
1-900-NURSING I think...
No
I think the the posters referred to NAFTA and illegals. They didn't point their finger at Mexicans. More than Mexicans are sneaking across the border. The article didn't say Mexicans. It didn't even blame illegals.
Perhaps you are one of those knee jerk Bush/Fox internationalists promoting cheap foreign workers, one who is delighted to see cheap labor pull down the American poor working class.
It's to be expected with a mass influx of people from 3rd world countries with no regulation.
I am working-class and my wages haven't been affected. But then I don't clean hotel rooms or pick beans.
Again, it is not my to slur anyone.
I have have previously stated, one of my personal physicians told me that "foreigners" are bringing TB into this country. My physician never said that anyone south of the border is bringing in TB. He said "foreigners."
Gentian Violet is a deep purple liquid. It may have disappeared from U. S. pharmacies. I don't know.
They used to swab out newborns mouths (for "thrush") with Gentian Violet in the newborn nurseries.
I think, but I'm not positive, Gentian Violet can be used for fungus.
I loaded up on it while in Mexico years ago. It's cheap and it works.
Wow, I had no idea. Interesting. Thanks.
I saw a preview of "House" last night, and I fear he may get whacked on the season's final episode (sniff-sniff).
Great point!
Is it contagious? Is it not contagious?
I need to read up on "fungus," or is it "fungi"?
This is by no means in defense of illegal immigration (which I am 100% against)...but....wouldn't or couldn't the SAME spreading of disease occur due to legal citizens (whether they be Mexican or otherwise) going back and forth across the border for tourism or to visit relatives?
"From what I've read in recent weeks, we're seeing the mumps, TB, this reported sickness, and even Leprosy. But God forbid we close the borders to protect our own people!"
A few years ago, the victims pretty much were sure it was contrails.
True. And the worse part is that the treatment for TB is long and sometimes the side effects are unpleasant. So, noncompliance is common, and it leads to the antibiotic-resistant strains we are seeing everywhere.
The language barrier complicates things because it is very difficult to explain and make understood the importance of staying with the months and months of medication that often cause nausea and other unpleasant symptoms. Add to it the fact that 3rd world people bring their primitive beliefs with them, and will often abandon modern American medical treatment for folk remedies that are useless.
The public health concerns are not exaggerated. Sometimes the patients have to be commited to institutions for treatment.
I know of a story reported in a nursing journal where a non-English speaking person (I think it was L.A.) was commited and taken by law enforcement to a hospital because he had active TB, and refused to follow the directions of the health care providers to isolate himself from his grandchildren. He and his wife were their babysitters, and they continued to have the children in their home every day.
A well-directed cough from the infected person next to you on the bus is enough to pass it on. TB has been on the rise in the U.S. for years. At one time, we had it well under control and cases were rare. The increase in immigration, globalization, and AIDS have combined to send rates soaring. AIDS is one of the causes because infected people do not have a funtioning immune system, so they get everything and anything. TB is one of those things.
Our government leaders do not seem to be concerned about the threat to public health that rampant immigration presents. Part of it is politics, and part of it is the effect of the political correctness movement - a good example is when AIDS morphed from a public health issue to a civil rights issue. Bad, bad, bad.
The more I read about this, the more I believe Delusional parasitosis is the likely culprit. With our current technology, the "stuff" the victims claim is growing out of their skin and burrowing under it could be tested and perhaps identified. You would have to believe there was a grand conspiracy in the scientific/medical community in order to believe they were refusing to test patients.
Thankx for that link from Web MD.
I just found one on Medline Plus about Gential Violet.
Sorry, I don't know how to do that "click here" thingey.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/uspdi/202259.html
Good job, Mom. I have to side with those that think this disease is bogus. Why would doctors refuse to believe there was anything there when these people supposedly had hairs springing out of unhealable lesions? Sounds like The Emperor's New Hair-filled Lesions to me.
You are right. Mexicans are not totally to blame. The current increase in TB rates actually began with the influx of Southeast Asian political refugees from Vietnam, Laos, etc.
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