A mysterious brain disease has affected hundreds of people, and cases are increasing, according to reports.
Across the province of New Brunswick in Canada, nearly 200 people have been afflicted by the mysterious, potentially deadly brain disorder.
A small group of patients with neurological symptoms, including hallucinations, muscular atrophy, vision issues, memory loss, and odd movements, were first observed in 2015. The number later grew to 48 cases.
However, some health experts and locals claim that there may be more than 200 people in the area who already have the illness. An unusually high percentage of those cases also include young people, who ordinarily do not exhibit symptoms of dementia or other neurological issues.
“I am particularly concerned about the increase in numbers of young-onset and early-onset neurological syndrome,” wrote neurologist Dr. Alier Marrero in a letter addressed to New Brunswick’s chief medical officer and the chief federal public health officer.
“Over the past year, I have been following 147 cases, between the ages of 17 and 80 years old. Out of those, 57 are early-onset cases and 41 are young-onset cases,” the letter continued.
But the government agency Public Health New Brunswick said in its February 2022 final report that there was “no evidence of a cluster of neurological syndrome of unknown cause.”
“People who were part of this cluster displayed symptoms that varied significantly from case to case, and there was no evidence of a shared common illness or of a syndrome of unknown cause,” the report added.
Despite the provincial government’s refusal to acknowledge the mysterious brain ailment, a dedicated group of New Brunswick patients and their families are raising awareness of the disorder.
“We are formally demanding that federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos unmuzzle Canadian scientists and direct the Public Health Agency of Canada to uphold the Canada Health Act and reinstate federal experts into the investigation,” Steve Ellis, one of the advocates, told the Toronto Star.
“For almost a year, we were led to believe that a thorough and unbiased public health investigation was in progress,” said another patient advocate, Stacie Cormier. “We are here to tell you that that did not happen.”
