'Happy' TB inmate in town

Alan Gathright, Rocky Mountain News

Published July 19, 2007 at midnight

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Robert Daniels was thrilled to arrive at a Denver hospital today after being locked up in a Phoenix hospital jail ward with tuberculosis for nearly a year.

"He was happy to be here. He said the weather was great here," recounted William Allstetter, spokesman for National Jewish Medical and Research Center.

Daniels, 27, is suffering from multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, known as MDR, which can’t be treated with some of the mainline drugs normally used to fight TB.

He’s been quarantined under guard at Maricopa Medical Center in Phoenix since last August under court order after medical authorities complained that he had endangered others by failing to wear a mask in public.

He was transferred under court order to National Jewish, one of the world’s top treatment centers for TB and other respiratory diseases.

The hospital recently made headlines for its successful treatment of Andrew Speaker, the Atlanta lawyer with drug-restistant TB who touched off an international health scare after he flew to Europe and back for his wedding.

Andrew Speaker’s condition continued to improve after undergoing surgery Tuesday to remove a tennis-ball-sized lump of diseased tissue at University of Colorado Hospital.

"We estimate he will be healthy enough to go home in two to three weeks," Allstetter said of Speaker, who is recuperating at CU hospital.

Meanwhile, Daniels appeared thin but was able to stand up from a stretcher and sit in a wheelchair after arriving at the hospital by ambulance from Centennial Airport in Arapahoe County, Allstetter said.

Daniels, a dual citizen of Russia and the United States, said he contracted TB about five years ago when he was living in Moscow.

The transfer was sought by Maricopa County medical experts because Daniels’ condition was deteriorating and he requires surgery, said the patient’s attorney, Linda Cosme.

Dr. Gwen Huitt, an infectious disease specialist at National Jewish, will evaluate Daniels and begin antibiotic treatment today.

Daniels received a hearing test shortly after arrival because the powerful antibiotics he has been receiving can cause hearing loss, Allstetter said. He will also receive an X-ray, a CAT scan, blood tests and a examination of his heart, lungs, kidneys, and liver function.

A saliva test will also be taken to see if he coughs up any tuberculosis organisms.

Allstetter stressed that Daniels poses no threat to National Jewish patients or the Denver community.

Denver and Arizona public health authorities have issued quarantine orders requiring Daniels to stay at either National Jewish or the University of Colorado Hospital during his treatment here.

Daniels will have a security officer posted outside his room 24 hours a day and will wear an electronic ankle monitor, Allstetter said.

Though Daniels wasn’t charged with a crime, Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said his agency is investigating whether the TB patient endangered others by disobeying health officials’ instructions to wear a mask in public.

"I may get him back because I am still conducting an investigation on him," Arpaio said.

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit claiming Daniels’ rights had been violated while in the Phoenix hospital, saying he’s being treated like a criminal.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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