Kimberly DeVaughn v. HHS - Td, chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) (2025)

Kimberly DeVaughn, a 54-year-old adult, received a Td vaccine on August 5, 2020. Approximately two weeks later, she began experiencing numbness and tingling in her toes, which progressed to weakness in her extremities.

She was initially diagnosed with Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) and received treatment including plasmapheresis and IVIG. Over two years later, her diagnosis was revised to Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP).

Petitioner alleged that the Td vaccine caused her CIDP. She presented expert testimony from Dr.

Sami Khella, who opined that a causal link existed between the Td vaccine and her condition, drawing parallels to the known association between other vaccines and GBS, and suggesting molecular mimicry as a mechanism. Respondent presented expert testimony from Dr.

You-Wen He, who argued that the evidence did not support a causal link between the Td vaccine and GBS or CIDP, and that case reports and limited studies were insufficient to establish causation. The court denied entitlement, finding that Petitioner failed to establish a medical theory causally connecting the Td vaccine to CIDP (Althen prong one).

The court noted that Petitioner over-relied on GBS literature and that the evidence specific to CIDP and the Td vaccine was insufficient. The court also found that Petitioner did not establish a logical sequence of cause and effect (Althen prong two), as treating physicians' notes primarily indicated a temporal association rather than causation, and no alternative causes were definitively ruled out by the evidence presented.

The court did not reach Althen prong three (temporal relationship) as the first two prongs were not met.