{"package_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_97-vv-00573","decision_granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_97-vv-00573-cl6648190","petitioner_identifier":"Ms. Fadelalla","is_minor":null,"age_at_vaccination":null,"age_unit_raw":null,"vaccine_type":"rubella","vaccination_date":"1994-08-22","condition_raw":"Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS)","condition_category":"GBS","autism_spectrum_adjacent":0,"outcome":"denied","award_amount_usd":null,"decision_date":"1999-10-12","extraction_version":"gemini-v2","extracted_at":"2026-04-30T14:10:22.498656+00:00","number_of_concurrent_vaccines":1,"dose_number":null,"time_to_onset_days":null,"theory_of_causation":"Rubella vaccine, August 22, 1994. Alleged GBS (off-table injury — GBS not on Vaccine Injury Table for rubella). Hospitalized Sep 12-23, 1994 at Lenox Hill Hospital with GBS diagnosis. DISMISSED — SM denied Apr 15, 1999: petitioner failed prima facie case of causation-in-fact. Petitioner's expert Dr. Goodgold: GBS based on absence of alternative cause and GBS experience with tetanus/flu vaccines (not rubella); credibility undermined. CFC Judge Hewitt (Oct 12, 1999): SM sustained — absence of alternative cause insufficient; affirmative burden not met; Dr. Arnason more credible. DB had decision_date = 1999-04-15 (SM denial date); corrected to 1999-10-12 (CFC opinion).","is_death":0,"date_of_death":null,"petition_filed_date":"1997-08-18","case_summary":"Pauline Fadelalla received a rubella vaccination on August 22, 1994. Following the vaccination, she developed a rash, itching in her hands and arms, burning sensation in her palms, tingling in her fingertips and toes, and weakness. From September 12 to 23, 1994, she was hospitalized at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City and diagnosed with Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS). Ms. Fadelalla filed a petition for vaccine injury compensation on August 18, 1997.\n\nBecause GBS is not listed on the Vaccine Injury Table for the rubella vaccine, Ms. Fadelalla was required to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the rubella vaccine actually caused her GBS. Her principal expert witness was Dr. Albert Goodgold, a neurologist and Professor of Neurology at New York University Medical School with forty years of experience. Dr. Goodgold testified that the rubella vaccine had caused Ms. Fadelalla's GBS, relying on two bases: first, that he had observed GBS in patients who received other vaccines (specifically tetanus and flu vaccines, not rubella vaccines), and second, that he could identify no other cause. Dr. Goodgold was unfamiliar with much of the medical literature submitted on petitioner's behalf, and he frequently refused to answer questions during cross-examination. Respondent's expert, Dr. Arnason, testified that while the timing of petitioner's symptoms was consistent with a vaccine reaction and that he had no opinion as to an alternate cause, there was an insufficient basis to attribute Ms. Fadelalla's GBS to the rubella vaccine.\n\nThe special master denied the petition on April 15, 1999, finding that petitioner had failed to present a prima facie case that the rubella vaccine caused her GBS. The special master independently reviewed the medical literature and concluded that it was anecdotal and did not directly address the causal connection between rubella vaccination and GBS. She found Dr. Arnason's testimony more credible than Dr. Goodgold's, and concluded that Dr. Goodgold's opinion — based essentially on the absence of any other identifiable cause — was insufficient to establish causation by a preponderance of the evidence. Petitioner filed a motion for review.\n\nJudge Hewitt, writing for the Court of Federal Claims on October 12, 1999, sustained the special master's decision. The court held that the special master's findings of fact and credibility determinations were not arbitrary, capricious, or an abuse of discretion. In an off-table case, the petitioner bears the affirmative burden of proving causation-in-fact by a preponderance of the evidence; it is not sufficient to show that no alternative cause can be identified. Petitioner cannot substitute the absence of other causes for her own failure to affirmatively prove that the vaccine more likely than not caused her injury. The court also found that Dr. Goodgold's prior experience with GBS occurring after tetanus and flu vaccines provided no rational basis to infer that rubella vaccines cause GBS, and that the scientific literature submitted by petitioner was anecdotal and did not directly address the causal connection in question. The motion for review was denied and the special master's decision was sustained.","is_minor_inferred":0,"is_pediatric_broad":0,"special_master":null,"petitioner_identifier_original":null,"caption_petitioner_name":null,"petitioner_attorney_name":null,"petitioner_attorney_firm":null,"petitioner_attorney_location":null,"adjudicator_name":null,"caption_people_backfilled_at":null,"attorney_canonical_keys":null,"firm_canonical_key":null,"package_title":"Fadelalla v. United States","canonical_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_97-vv-00573","plain_text_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_97-vv-00573.txt","json_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/case/USCOURTS-cofc-1_97-vv-00573.json","source_documents":[{"granule_id":"USCOURTS-cofc-1_97-vv-00573-cl6648190","title":"Fadelalla v. United States","docket_text":"lead-opinion","date_issued":"1999-10-12","pdf_url":"https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/6765427/fadelalla-v-united-states/","pdf_bytes":null,"triage_decision":"keep","triage_reason":"recovered via CL opinion 6648190 (html_with_citations)","download_status":"ok","registry_pdf_url":"https://vicp-registry.org/pdf/USCOURTS-cofc-1_97-vv-00573/USCOURTS-cofc-1_97-vv-00573-cl6648190"}]}