EXCLUSIVE: Doctors weigh in on mystery illnesses plaguing attendees at Donald Trump rally
A faulty air conditioning system or a blinding stage light are among the leading theories for what caused a spate of mysterious illnesses at a Trump rally.
At least six people who sat stage right behind the former President in Tucson, Arizona, last Thursday suffered from 'burning' red eyes in the hours after the political gathering and had to go to the ER, according to local reports.
Others said they were left 'blinded' by any bright lights in the days afterward, and had to hide indoors with a towel over their heaad and suffer constant pain.
Two doctors told DailyMail.com they believed this may be an issue with the AC, with it either blowing too strongly and drying out attendees eyes or blowing a fine dust into their eyes that caused irritation and damage.
A third suggested, however, that it was most likely to be a faulty stage light that had caused the illnesses after blasting strong UV light onto the attendees throughout the one-hour and 18-minute rally.
Some people online have suggested the injuries could be down to a pepper spray or other chemical substances, but the doctors said this was unlikely — adding that a pepper spray would likely have caused immediate symptoms. It remains unclear whether this was an intentional act or simply down to a faulty system in the building.
A spokesperson for the US Secret Service said there was no known threat to the former President at the rally. The Trump campaign said in a statement: 'The Trump campaign has been collecting information. We remain committed to the countless patriots that attend our high-energy, high-impact rallies across the country.' It is the second scare to hit a Trump rally in just two days, after reports circulated yesterday that there were explosives found in a car.
And in mid-July, one person died and two were critically injured during an assassination attempt on Trump at his rally in Pennsylvania. Dr Talin Amadian, an optometrist in Los Angeles, told this website: 'My train of thought is going towards this is something with the AC and the vents that are there. 'They do blast the AC pretty strongly in these buildings, and sometimes this could dry out the surface membranes of the eyes. 'It's also possible that maybe there was some dust in the AC vents — and this could have [been blown onto attendees].' She added: 'I have sat under an AC vent in a long meeting and just the air flow, the constant air flow, it can irritate the eyes and sometimes dry them out.'
Dr Stuart Fischer, an emergency medicine physician in New York City agreed, saying: 'It could be something in the air conditioning vents that was blown onto attendees, because it's only affecting those in part of the stage. 'It could have been sand, sawdust, anything really. 'It may be that something blew over these people and they all rubbed their eyes, which is the worst thing you can probably do if something is coating the front of the eyes because it can cause abrasions (scratches).' The clinical spokesperson for the American Academy of Opthalmologists also suggested to DailyMail.com that the reactions could have been caused by a substance in the air that was blown onto attendees.
The doctors were suspicious for this because illnesses had only been reported in one area, which they said may point to a fault with the air conditioning system in that area of the building. The doctors said that symptoms of this eye damage would emerge within hours after the rally and likely then prompt patients to go to the ER. But they said the damage wouldn't be permanent, with many attendees eyes recovering in the days afterward. The injuries were first reported on Tuesday this week, five days after the rally, although the first patient came forward on Friday last week, just a day after the rally took place.
Dr Robert Cykiert, an ophthalmologist at NYU Langone Health, suggesting to DailyMail.com that the injuries were likely down to a faulty stage light. He said: 'The symptoms that these people are reporting are pretty classic for what we call UV keratitis, or ultra-violet keratitis.
'If UV light is of high intensity and aimed at your eyes, it will burn the surface of the cornea and it will give you intense pain, blurry vision, tears, redness and swelling in the eyes that lasts for about 24 to 48 hours. 'I see patients with this who go to sun parlors and they sit under UV to get a sun tan and don't wear the plastic goggles, and they get these very typical UV burns in the cornea.
…