O.M.V. v. HHS - Influenza, demyelinating neurological condition of the CNS (2021)

O.M.V., a 39-year-old adult, received an influenza vaccine on November 15, 2013. The day after vaccination, he began experiencing neurological symptoms including confusion, weakness, and tingling on the left side of his body.

Over the following weeks and months, he was diagnosed with various conditions including generalized weakness, migraine, transient ischemic attack (TIA), stroke (CVA), and possible hemiplegic migraine. Medical professionals also considered a diagnosis of a demyelinating disease, and Petitioner's cerebrospinal fluid showed oligoclonal bands, which can be indicative of Multiple Sclerosis (MS).

However, MRIs did not consistently show lesions characteristic of MS or ADEM. Petitioner's treating physicians and experts offered conflicting opinions on his diagnosis, with some suggesting MS or an ADEM-like onset that morphed into MS, while others found his condition ill-defined or not meeting the criteria for MS or ADEM.

The respondent's expert opined that Petitioner's diagnosis remained unclear and did not support MS, ADEM, or a demyelinating condition. The Special Master denied compensation, finding that Petitioner failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the flu vaccine caused his alleged neurological condition.

The court sustained this decision, agreeing that Petitioner did not establish a sound and reliable medical theory connecting the vaccine to a demyelinating illness, particularly regarding the proposed innate immune response mechanism. The court found the Special Master's conclusion that Petitioner did not suffer from a vaccine-related demyelinating illness, and thus failed to meet the causation requirements under the Althen test, was not arbitrary or capricious.