Carolina Credibility Check · Apr 23, 06:45 PM

On April 12, NBC17 (WNCN-TV) in Raleigh, North Carolina, aired a story, Group Seeks Medical Mercury Ban, highlighting the ongoing efforts of Mrs. Angela Medlin to pass legislation banning the use of thimerosal in vaccines in that state. Co-founder of Moms Against Mercury, Medlin and her colleague, Mrs. Amy Carson, have frequently brought their concerns about vaccines and autism to members of the media and the state legislature. Advocating for passage of North Carolina House Bill 431, Mrs. Medlin asserted that her son was made autistic by his vaccinations, and asserted that every one of the vaccinations he received was poisonous.

“Essentially every vaccine he received and every time he was vaccinated, he was overdosed on a powerful neurotoxin.”

In search of an expert on mercury toxicity in autistic children, WNCN reporter Brian Roy turned to Dr. John Pittman, proprietor of the Carolina Center for Integrative Medicine.

Dr. John Pittman treats kids who have been exposed to mercury. He says before the Federal Government banned thimerosal vaccines for infants in 1999, the problems were obvious.

“They determined that children were getting by the time they were just 6 months old, they were getting 87 times the amount of mercury than is considered safe for the consumption of fish during that same time period,” Pittman said.

North Carolina Medical Board records indicate that Dr. Pittman was originally issued a license to practice medicine in 1987. Fifteen years later that license was suspended following an investigation of his treatment of a patient who almost died after five sessions of intravenous ozone and hydrogen peroxide. According to the Notice of Charges and Allegations filed on May 15, 2002:

Dr. Pittman began treating Patient A in December 1998 for, among other things, fatigue, Candida (yeast infections) and sleep disturbances.

After attempting other forms of treatment, Dr. Pittman decided to treat one or more of Patient A’s conditions with a diluted form of hydrogen peroxide administered intravenously (IV). A well-known potential risk from IV hydrogen peroxide is hemolysis; that is, injury to the red blood cells such that the delivery of oxygen to the body is impaired. Severe cases of hemolysis can result in fatigue, light-headedness, chest-tightening, faintness, and even death. Dr. Pittman failed to inform Patient A of the risk of hemolysis prior to beginning her on IV hydrogen peroxide.

Due to the increased risk of hemolysis when administering IV hydrogen peroxide, it is important to make sure the patient’s red blood cell count is sufficient before and during this treatment. This is accomplished by testing the hemoglobin and hematocrit (hereafter referred to as an H&H test).

An H&H test is particularly important during IV hydrogen peroxide treatments with women who are menstruating because they are more liekly to have a low red cell blood count. At the time Dr. Pittman began IV hydrogen peroxide treatments, Patient A had just finished her menstrual period and had reported to Dr. Pittman that her last period was unusually heavy.

In addition, an H&H test is particularly important before and during IV hydrogen peroxide treatments with patients who, like Patient A, are members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses and, therefore, do not accept blood transfusions. In serious cases of hemolysis resulting in severe anemia, a blood transfusion may be the only way to save a patient’s life. Dr. Pittman knew or should have known Patient A was a Jehovah’s Witness because she disclosed this on the first page of a Registration and Medical History form completed at Dr. Pittman’s request.

Despite the foregoing, Dr. Pittman did not do an IV test immediately prior to Patient A’s first IV hydrogen peroxide treatment on October 16. This should have been done to determine whether Patient A had a sufficient red blood cell count and, if so, to record her baseline levels against which to compare future leveles. In addition, Dr. Pittman waited until Patient A’s fifth treatment on October 24 before doing an H&H test. At that point, Patient A reported fatigue, light-headedness, fainting, and chest tightness — symptoms usually associated with hemolysis.

On October 25, Dr. Pittman received the results of the H&H test and Patient A’s hemoglobin had dropped to 5.8, less than half the normal value. Dr. Pittman called Patient A and informed her of the test results. However, instead of recommending an emergency evaluation, he advised her to drink fluids and return to the office the next day.

Later that evening, Patient A became very weak and incoherent and her husband took her to the hospital. Her hemoglobin at the point had dropped to 3.8. Patient A remained in the hospital for six days until her hemoglobin had returned to a safe level.

The Board charged that by failing to inform his patient of the risk of hemolysis with IV hydrogen peroxide, failing to perform an H&H test immediately prior to administering IV hydrogen peroxide, waiting to perform an H&H test until his patient’s fifth treatment eight days after she had begun the course of intravenous treatments, and failing to recommend an emergency evaluation once he received information that his patient was suffering from severe anemia with hemolysis, Dr. Pittman engaged in unprofessional conduct, including, but not limited to,

departure from, or the failure to conform to, the standards of acceptable and prevailing medical practice, or the ethics of the medical profession.

The Board also charged that Dr. Pittman had failed to properly monitor his patient to ensure that he was prescribing a safe dose of the drug Coumadin; that he had failed to recommend any effective form of treatment for his patient’s high cholesterol levels; and that he had failed to treat his patient’s depression or refer her to a mental health professional.

The Consent Order issued on September 7, 2002 called for indefinite suspension of Dr. Pittman’s license to practice medicine, all but sixty days of which was immediately stayed contingent on his compliance with specific restrictions. Dr. Pittman agreed to permanently discontinue intravenous administration of ozone or hydrogen peroxide, and to improve his identification and monitoring of patients who are likely to refuse blood transfusions or blood products, and who are therefore at greater risk for the sort of complications experienced by “Patient A.” He was also prohibited from supervising physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, or clinical pharmacist practitioners.

The stay enabled Dr. Pittman to return to medical practice — a practice recently expanded to include treatment of autistic children supposedly suffering from “heavy metal toxicity.”

“Dr. John Pittman is in Raleigh, NC. He’s an MD and chelation expert with many years of experience and just started accepting children as patients after recently learning about the rise in autism, etc. He’s following Dr. Cave’s protocol.” (July 29, 2002)

The terms of the stay, however, severely limited the extent to which he could expand his practice.

In the 2004 article, Dose of Their Own Medicine, Creative Loafing reporter Tara Servatius characterized Dr. Pittman, fellow chelationist Rashid Buttar, and their colleagues in the then-newly-founded North Carolina Integrative Medical Society, as persecuted heroes victimized by “police state” harassment tactics and overreactivity of ethically conflicted regulators “controlled by special interests” and determined to prevail over their noble, innocent competitors.

After Pittman, an integrative doctor, administered ozone and a diluted form of hydrogen peroxide intravenously to a patient who complained of chronic fatigue — a procedure he performed regularly — the patient experienced hemolysis, a known but rare side-effect of this treatment. The patient was hospitalized for five days while she recovered, but suffered no permanent physical injury.

For his part, Dr. Pittman, contrasted his treatment with that recently meted out to North Carolina plastic surgeon Dr. Peter Tucker.

“The board thinks I’m more dangerous than a plastic surgeon that kills patients… This guy who kills a patient got off completely.”

Although Dr. Pittman alleged that Dr. Tucker had “killed a patient,” and that he had “gotten off completely,” the Consent Order in Dr. Tucker’s case indicates that the patient in question died after a nurse-anesthetist administered fentanyl to her after surgery, in Dr. Tucker’s absence and without authorization from him. The patient promptly stopped breathing; however, the nurse-anesthetist attempted to deal with the situation on her own, repeatedly declined offers of assistance from other staff members, and directed them not to summon Dr. Tucker. Immediately upon being informed of the situation, Dr. Tucker resuscitated the patient, who was transported to the hospital and died three days later. The Medical Board acknowledged that Dr. Tucker could not reasonably be expected to anticipate or foresee all acts of gross negligence committed by staff, but affirmed his obligation to adequately supervise them. Dr. Tucker’s license to practice medicine was suspended for twelve months, stayed in full upon consideration that he had cooperated with investigators, had immediately terminated the nurse-anesthetist’s employment contract, had instituted more stringent supervisory procedures, and had otherwise practiced without incident.

In mid-2005, Dr. Pittman added to his website a description of his Pediatric Program for Autism. He characterized as “exciting” the speculation that autism may be a consequence of vaccine-induced mercury toxicity, asserted that the majority of autistic children he had tested were found to suffer from chronic yeast infections which “can have a toxic effect on the brain and nervous system,” and described a course of treatment similar to that outlined in the Defeat Autism Now! (DAN!) protocol developed by the Autism Research Institute.

Great excitement has been generated over the last year with the recognition that the neurological and immune system damage seen in autism may be the result of mercury toxicity from the preservative that is used in childhood vaccines… Because of damage to the immune system, these children often experience a greater than usual number of chronic infections and untimely receive multiple course of antibiotics. Repeated antibiotic use leads to destruction of beneficial bacteria within the digestive tract, creating an abnormal environment that promotes the growth of yeast, often Candida… We routinely perform urine testing on these children looking for these waste products of fungal metabolism, and most of the time they are found. Treatment is then based on eradication of the infectious agent with cycles of anti-fungal medications followed by therapies that are directed toward repair and restoration of the normal intestinal flora. In addition, nutrient analysis testing often reveals significantly low levels of important nutrients, particularly amino acids and minerals… Dietary changes are therefore necessary along with nutrient replacement and direct treatment of the infection. In addition, therapies that address the removal of heavy metals using the oral chelator DMSA are useful.

In April 2006, Dr. Pittman completed an eight-hour training at the DAN! conference in Washington, D.C. Shortly thereafter, a listing for his practice was added to the Autism Research Institute website.

In September 2006, Dr. Pittman petitioned the North Carolina Medical Board to lift the suspension of his license, except for its ban on intravenous administration of ozone and hydrogen peroxide. The Amended Consent Order enables him to resume supervision of physician assistants, nurse practitioners, or clinical pharmacist practitioners, and therefore expand his practice. In pursuit of that goal, he has hired a recent college graduate to serve as Marketing Communications Coordinator.

The Carolina Center for Integrative Medicine (CCIM), the Triangle’s leading provider of integrative medical treatments and therapies, has announced the recent hiring of Lisa Stewart as Marketing Communications Coordinator… Stewart is a graduate from the University of North Carolina at Pembroke with a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications with a concentration in Public Relations and a minor in Marketing.

Carolina Center Founder and Director, Dr. John Pittman, is pleased to have Stewart join his growing team and says that her fresh perspective and enthusiasm will help the practice expand into their desired targeted markets. “This year, our focus will be educating area physicians and medical practices about the Carolina Center and how our therapies and treatments can benefit their patients,” explains Dr. Pittman. “Lisa will be very instrumental in helping us with this communication effort. She has the drive and the dedication needed to help us open these doors.”

In addition to her marketing responsibilities, Stewart will also be working with CCIM staff to expand the practice’s marketing to existing patients, as well as working with current patients to encourage retention and referrals. “My goal is to increase the number of new patients to the Carolina Center,” adds Stewart. “I believe that educating people on the practice and what Dr. Pittman does is going to be key in attracting these new patients.”

Given the North Carolina Medical Board’s finding that Dr. Pittman “departed from or failed to conform to the standards of acceptable and prevailing medical practice, or the ethics of the medical profession” over the course of his extended treatment of “Patient A,” it should not be too surprising to learn that the same doctor has already departed from standards of practice established by the loose coalition of “autism treatment” providers who welcomed him into their fold in spite of his then-current license suspension. DAN! protocol documents specifically warn that the chelation drug DMSA increases excretion of zinc and copper, and that all children treated with this drug should therefore receive supplemental zinc and copper during the course of chelation. A recent Cornell study offers additional cause for concern with its finding that non-lead-poisoned rats administered chelation drugs without mineral supplementation suffered cognitive and behavioral decline similar to that experienced by lead-poisoned animals. In spite of these recommendations and findings, a recent parent account indicates that at least one autistic child being treated by Dr. Pittman for “heavy metal toxicity” receives no mineral supplementation whatsoever during the course of this procedure.

“We do DMSA every 8 hours for 3 days on and 11 off, and my son has very low zinc, (always), so I asked Dr. Pittman if I could supplement minerals in between on the days of the chelation. Dr. Pittman said he prefer not to give minerals “at all” when chelating, because, instead of the chelator work to remove the metals from the body it will work in removing the minerals and consequently less metals will come out. He said this could be another reason some children don’t have a big dump of metals when chelating. He prefers double the amount after the chelation. He has posted reminders everywhere in his office NOT TO TAKE CALCIUM ON THE DAYS OF CHELATION.” (November 2, 2006)

One hopes that the optimistic and inexperienced Ms. Stewart will not be overly successful in attaining her professional goals. One hopes that the young autistic targets of Dr. Pittman’s newly-invigorated marketing efforts will be luckier than “Patient A,” and that they will be spared the harm that results from the mineral depletion that predictably accompanies an extended course of chelation. If they are not, one hopes that local media outlets might assign more demanding reporters than Ms. Servatius to cover the story, given her suggestion that “Patient A”‘s survival somehow renders acceptable Dr. Pittman’s extended disregard for her deterioration under his care. And one hopes that in the future, reporters such as Mr. Roy might run a quick credibility check of the source of any “expert opinions” on the subject of autism, before offering them flattering moments in the media spotlight.

Comments


  1. One hopes that you never stop blogging and exposing these vermin for what they are: oily salesmen with greenbacks-based ethics.

    — Bartholomew Cubbins    Apr 23, 08:08 PM    #

  2. Excellent!

    Before 1910 in America, medicine was populated by several poorly educated, non-scientific hucksters and snake oil salesman of the highest (lowest?) order.

    It appears that many medical practitioners in America today are attempting to go back to the way things were back then.

    Thanks for shining the cold, hard light of truth upon them.

    — Club 166    Apr 23, 11:03 PM    #

  3. As always, Kathleen, your background checks are sound, your presentation is clear, and your indictment is resounding. Thanks for your efforts.

    — steve d    Apr 24, 02:32 PM    #

  4. “Dr. Pittman said he prefer not to give minerals “at all” when chelating, because, instead of the chelator work to remove the metals from the body it will work in removing the minerals and consequently less metals will come out.”

    And another fine upstanding medical practitioner with little knowledge of basic chemistry joins the ranks of those who experiment on small children. Wonderful.

    — notmercury    Apr 24, 04:54 PM    #

  5. Kathleen,

    If Dr. Pittman had ever looked at the scientific or medical literature, he would have found that DMSA does not significantly affect the zinc levels – and that giving zinc (or calcium) during DMSA “therapy” would have no effect on its ability to “remove [heavy] metals”.

    There is an article covering this topic – freely available on the ‘net:

    http://toxsci.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/54/2/473

    What a loser!

    Prometheus

    — Prometheus    Apr 25, 05:34 PM    #

  6. I recently saw Dr. Pitman speak at a conference in North Carolina for homeschooling parents of special needs children. He most certainly did present research to support much of what he was saying, and he does have credentials and training in “basic chemistry.” Here is his bio from his website:

    “Dr. Pittman received his B.S. in biology in 1980 and completed studies for a M.S. in biochemistry and microbiology at the University of Georgia in 1982. He received his M.D. degree from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia in 1986 and attended the Pediatric Residency Program at NC Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem, North Carolina with an interest in Preventive Medicine.

    Dr. Pittman began working as an Emergency Physician and was Emergency Department Director in Rocky Mount and Southport, North Carolina. It was in the Emergency Room setting that he realized how much lifestyle issues—especially diet and nutrition—were playing significant roles in the health of the patients he saw. Prompted by this, Dr. Pittman began exploring avenues of incorporating conventional and holistic medicine with nutrition into a clinical medical practice. In 1994, he established The Carolina Center, a facility where multiple healing modalities were brought together to help patients with chronic degenerative illnesses.”

    It would be good to remember that we do not yet have a thorough understanding of brain disorders such as autism, and that research and investigative medicine are the only ways we’ll ever be able to discover the truth. Look at human history – there are numerous examples of brilliant scientists who were dismissed as “quacks” but who in fact turned out to be onto something…

    — Jennifer Wallace    Apr 27, 09:23 AM    #

  7. Interesting that no one wants to hazard a swag at what fraction those labeled as a “quack” actually turned out to be right. I’ll take the Price is Right tactic and corner the sweet spot: I’ll bet on 1 in a billion or less.

    And oh, those “qualifications” are probably something he’d want to hide rather than broadcast.
    Not. Impressive. In. The. Least.

    Investor/patients want more.

    — Bartholomew Cubbins    May 1, 01:20 PM    #

  8. WARNING! Snarkiness Ahead!

    Let’s take a look at Dr. Pittman’s credentials and what they mean, shall we?

    “Dr. Pittman received his B.S. in biology in 1980 and completed studies for a M.S. in biochemistry and microbiology at the University of Georgia in 1982.”

    “...completed studies for a M.S. in biochemistry and microbiology…”

    This would indicate that Dr. Pittman completed the coursework but was not awarded the degree of M.S., most likely because he was finally accepted to medical school after a short wait.

    “He received his M.D. degree from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia in 1986 and attended the Pediatric Residency Program at NC Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem, North Carolina with an interest in Preventive Medicine.”

    Note that he “...attended the Pediatric Residency Program at NC Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem, North Carolina…”, but he did not complete it. In this regard, he falls in line with two other worthies of “alternative” autism therapy – Dr. Bradstreet and Dr. Buttar – who also did not finish a residency.

    After failing to finish a residency, Dr. Pittman took a job in the Emergency Room of hospitals in two small North Carolina towns. Frustrated with that, he decided to take the refuge of least resistance and practice “alternative” and “complementary” medicine.

    No, not very impressive credentials in the least.

    Prometheus

    — Prometheus    May 1, 04:33 PM    #