Missouri teenager paralyzed by rare virus clings to ventilator

An 18-year-old boy from Missouri is paralyzed from the neck down after being infected with the West Nile virus and can only breathe with the help of a ventilator.

John Proctor VI, affectionately known as “BB,” first began experiencing headaches and dizziness earlier this month, and within days his speech became slurred and he was unable to raise his arm or smile, local NBC affiliate KSDK reported.

Fearing their son might have a stroke, the boy's parents took him to the emergency room on August 11. After conducting tests, doctors determined that their son had contracted the sometimes fatal mosquito-borne disease.

According to Dr. Farrin Manion, chairman of the Mercy St. Louis School of Medicine, Proctor's case is rare: “Only a small proportion actually develop a neuroinvasive disease in which the virus attacks our nervous system, brain or spinal cord.”

There is currently no vaccine or treatment and his parents are praying that their son will make a “full recovery.”

The 18-year-old had just graduated from high school in the spring

The teenager had just graduated from high school in the spring and was working on his apprenticeship as a diesel mechanic.

His father said in a GoFundMe campaign that he became ill “out of the blue” and then “got progressively worse within a matter of days.”

On Sunday, doctors at Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis informed him that their son had contracted a severe case of West Nile virus.

“Doctors have finally figured out what caused so much damage to our son's previously healthy body. Our son contracted a severe West Nile infection from a mosquito bite here in northern St. Louis County,” Proctor said, among other things.

He said his son is currently recovering from a “stroke and pneumonia.”

On Monday, he said doctors removed the breathing tube from his mouth and performed a tracheostomy to help him breathe, and he was undergoing rehabilitation and physical therapy.

“Our son is very weak right now and is making small but great progress in being able to move his right arm and both legs. His left arm is still very weak, he cannot move his neck or sit up on his own,” Proctor said.

Proctor holds his high school diploma from McCluer High School in his hands

The boy's father, John Proctor V, is praying that his son will make a full recovery from a virus for which there is no treatment or vaccine.

“The doctor says this is going to be a marathon to try to get him back to the state he was in before this virus almost killed him.”

“Please continue to pray for BB, pray for our family and friends during this traumatic time and keep the doctors and medical staff in your prayers as well.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about one in 150 people develop severe symptoms of the West Nile virus, which affects the central nervous system, including meningitis and inflammation of the meninges surrounding the brain and spinal cord, according to NBC News.

Symptoms include neck stiffness, headaches, disorientation and paralysis. Recovery can take weeks or months, and some effects may be permanent.

Earlier this month, Dr. Anthony Fauci, President Biden's former chief medical adviser, was hospitalized for nearly a week due to a West Nile virus infection.

Fauci told the health and medical publication STAT: “I have never been so sick in my life.”

“I really felt like I had been hit by a truck,” said the 83-year-old doctor. “I have never had such a bad illness.”

West Nile virus is a flavivirus, a family of viruses that also includes St. Louis encephalitis virus, Japanese encephalitis virus and Powassan virus, the health publication says.

Earlier this month, Dr. Anthony Fauci, President Biden's former chief medical adviser, was hospitalized for nearly a week with a West Nile virus infection.

West Nile virus is a flavivirus, a family of viruses that also includes St. Louis encephalitis virus, Japanese encephalitis virus and Powassan virus, the health publication says.

The virus is spread by infected mosquitoes and is the leading cause of mosquito-borne disease in the United States. It usually causes no symptoms, but can make patients who do have symptoms very sick.

There is no vaccine to protect against the mosquito-borne disease, nor are there any specific antiviral drugs to treat it.

Intravenous fluids and painkillers are used to treat severe cases.

According to experts, the months of August and September are the peak season and when most cases occur.

The best protection is to limit time outdoors and use insect spray.

As of Thursday afternoon, the family's GoFundMe campaign had raised nearly $2,000 of its $10,000 goal.