Young mom . So, when you are seeing this. We are like oh my gosh. Someone said, could this be a poison . This is the kind of stuff that was used by russian kgb agents. Who in the right mind would even think of this . You need to search those computers, search those phones. This is being done to her on purpose, she is in danger. This evil came into our lives. How could this be . Welcome to dateline. Loved to ride, and was hardwired to go the extra mile with everything that she did. Then, suddenly, her health collapsed. Doctors were baffled as her symptoms multiplied and grew more alarming. And then is Confounding Mistreat took a sinister turn. Somebody wanted her dad, and they thought that they had hatched a foolproof plan. Could a keen eyed physician and the fbi stop it in time . Here is the depression blue mystery. From the moment the ambulance arrived at the san diego emergency room in march, 2018, the situation was frightening. And, desperate triage nurse laura took one look at the young woman on the gurney, and knew that something was terribly, terribly wrong. She was losing her vision, she cannot feel or extremities, feet or hands. She could not even see the water that i was giving her. The patients name was brigitta, she had just turned 28. Yet, she seemed to be near death. At that point, i mean, she was very, very sick . Probably the sickest patients in the er at that time. I told my coworkers that, she might go on me. Whatever was killing her was not evident. There were no bruises, no wounds or no obvious signs of infection and yet when doctor Jeff La Point examined her she was critically ill, very ill. So began an unusual detective story. First, the doctors had to unravel a medical mystery. Soon enough, real detectives would be on the case as well. But at that moment. We saw someone was almost apathetic, didnt have a personality, she could barely talk and tell us anything it was hard to get history. Looking for clues, the doctor dove into her medical records, and they were extensive. Brigida have been suffering for months. Nausea, fatigue, excruciating pain. She had been in and out of dr. Offices and ers repeatedly. Her sister olga says brigidas illness will come on suddenly. She was often violently sick. She had to call from work, and was sick for days. Various doctors had come up with theories, from fibroids to cancer. There was one doctor that actually told her oh, you have really bad menstrual cramps, because she felt like one of her symptoms was that her ovaries were about to fall out of her body. She called me and said, she was crying, and said i do not know what to do. And i am frustrated because i thought, nobody could tell us what was wrong with her. Brigida had wondered if stress could be making her sick. She had a toddler to chase around, a husband in the navy who was trying to find a new career, and a new job teaching special ed. It was thrilling, but overwhelming. So doctors put her on medication for depression, but then she got sick again. She kept going to the doctors, and she kept getting worse, worse and worse. Losing a lot of weight. Her mom, also named olga, Felt Helpless as her daughters illness progressed. When you are getting more and more worried, seeing your daughter waste away . I was thinking she was getting tired of going to the doctors, and then finding nothing. She says mom, i give up, i will not go to the doctors anymore. I said no, you cant, you have to go back. You cannot give up. She was not even walking normally anymore. Just one it seemed like things could not get worse, a disturbing new symptom. I went next door to see her, and she, we ended up on her kitchen floor. And she was crying to me and said, she had pulled out a chunk of her hair, like, just in the shower. It came out. Brigida beautiful, dark brown locks started to fall out by the fistful. When you see her lose her hair, i felt like that was her most beautiful trait. How concerned were you . We were very concerned. And on march 5th, she called Me In The Morning and said mom, i need to go to the hospital. She says, i could hardly breathe. Brigida lived in the country, in a house right next to her parents. Yet, that morning, she could not really see her way to their place. And the pain in her legs was so bad that she could barely get into her mothers suv. I tried to help her by raising a leg, but even the touch was painful. She screamed. Her mom raced her to the Naval Hospital in san diego. She said mom, just drop me off as close as you can to the entrance. And. I still remember, i saw her walking. And she walked like, you know like the walking dead . Like a zombie . Like a zombie, it was horrible. But the navy doctors could also not figure out what was wrong. Brigidas husband took her back to their family doctor, who called an ambulance when they saw how sick she was. Now, at kaiser hospital, she was doctor liu points mystery patient. One of the mystery physicians working saw her and said, it is just not right, and from their our team was called. Doctor lapointe has Board Certification in medical toxicology, a rare thing in an er. As it happened, his expertise would prove critical. As a toxicologist, i was a little bit more in the detective role. So what was causing brigidas hair to fall out, not to mention the severe pain, vision loss and weakness . Doctors, when they first saw her said oh, it could be lupus . She had this chronic kind of withering, slow course. So auto immune stuff was on the list. Cancer does not make you lose your hair, its the therapy that makes you lose your hair. Doctor lapointe knew he had to solve this mystery fast. Brigida was fading. The clock was ticking. When i saw her and i knew that she was dying, she was in a lot of pain. She was in excruciating pain. And i remember being in the Hospital Room and i was like, i want to be close to my sister. So she put herself through an insane amount of pain just to turn her body to look at me. How close was she to dying . I watched my sister almost die, i knew that she was gone. A Family Anguish deepens, and the race to unravel this mystery shifts into overdrive. Coming up. Your daughter is getting weaker, and weaker. She was losing her vision . She was losing everything. For her husband and young son, were they in danger as well . I have a child in the equation now, i have a spouse. Lets make sure the child is safe, now they have not been exposed. When dateline continues. Been exposed. When dateline continues why hide your skin if dupixent has your moderatetosevere eczema or Atopic DermatitisUnder Control . Hide our skin . Not us. Because dupixent targets a root cause of eczema, it helps heal your skin from within keeping you one step ahead of it. And for kids ages 6 and up that means clearer skin, and noticeably less itch. Hide my skin . Not me. By helping to control eczema with dupixent, you can change how their skin looks and feels. And thats the kind of change you notice. Hide my skin . Not me. Dont use if youre allergic to dupixent. Serious allergic reactions can occur that can be severe. Tell your doctor about new or worsening eye problems such as eye pain or vision changes, including blurred vision, joint aches and pain, or a parasitic infection. Dont change or stop asthma medicines without talking to your doctor. When you help heal your skin from within, you can show more with less eczema. Talk to your childs Eczema Specialist about dupixent, a breakthrough eczema treatment. Your eyes. Beautiful on the outside, but if you have diabetes, there can be some notsopretty stuff going on inside. Its true, if you have diabetes, you know high blood sugar is the root of the problem. But that excess sugar can cause the Blood Vessels to be seriously damaged. And when that happens, this could happen vision loss or even blindness. Thats right, Diabetic Retinopathy is a leading cause of blindness for adults in the u. S. But even though you cant see it, there is something you can do about it. Remember this now is the time to get your eyes checked. Eye care is an incredibly important part of your longterm diabetes management. See a path forward with actions and treatments a Retina Specialist can provide that may help your eyes and protect against vision loss. Just say to yourself, now eye see. then go see an eye care specialist. Visit noweyesee. Com to get the facts about diabetes, your eyes, and what you can do next to take charge of your sight. Brought to you by regeneron. Here at kaiser permanently hospital in san diego, brigida uto was so weak, she could not conjure up the energy to care about what was happening to her. Doctors have a term for patients in his apathetic state. La belle indifference. You are so weak wasting away, you dont have is inside like oh, that is fine. This tells you right there, but she was as sick as she could get, and possibly was near death . I think so, yes. Doctor Jeff Lapointe did not know for sure was making brigida sick. But there were his toxicologist mind, the symptoms indicated she might have been exposed to a toxic chemical. And he realized, she might not be the only one. There are so many moving pieces, i now have a child in the equation, i have a spouse. Lets make sure we are observing them, make sure the child is safe, that they have not been exposed. He had brigidas husband and son admitted to a separate hospital for testing. And for safety sake, they banned all visitors from her Hospital Room, even immediate family. There was a time where he did not know what was happening with your sister. Did you think, this visit, she might be gone already, nobody is telling us . Yes, oh yes. I was like a zombie, a walking zombie. Just going through the motions, hoping that she is okay. Knowing that if they had not called me to tell me that she was gone, it is because she is still here. Olga is two years younger than brigida, they have always been close. We should a bedroom when we were little. Of course, every night was like a sleep over. We did everything together, we were literally there for each other for everything that had happened. Throughout our childhood, teenage years, adult life. She was my go to person. Their dad, john mcingvale, worked for u. S. Customs at the border. They grew up in rural san diego county. There were no real dangers. It was a safe, i do like upbringing for your daughters . It is safe. Every place has its dangers. I mean, over the years we had a rattlesnake here or there, or somebody came through and stole a pick up truck. There are dangers, but that goes with anywhere. You cant protect someone from everything. From their dad, their girls learn caution. From their mom, they learned the importance of faith. I put them in a catholic school. They teach you a lot of moral values, things that are important in life. Brigida would beg to go to church during the week, is that true . During the week, yes. A little girl who begged to go to church grew into an accomplished young woman who ran across the and excelled in school. Did she put a lot of pressure on herself then, to be perfect . Yes. She has always been that way. Even in kindergarten, they used to get a lot of homework. She was the type of girl, if she made a little mistake, she did not want to have her pages show that she had erased something. She would start all over. Near the end of her senior year in high school, Brigida Met A Young Man named Race A Runner like he was, uto, a great behind her, but ambitious and determined to go to the Naval Academy in annapolis. When did you first hear about race . I was 16 years old. I remember, she met him at a car show. She was there doing the venture the graduating class. She did not go to our high school, he was there, remember her saying something after its like he met this guy, basically. And i was like oh, okay, i didnt think much of it, my sister did really not date that much. But its all got to know him better, she thought that he might just be the guy that she needed. She was always very into her books. She stuck to the rules. He took her to that adventurous part of her life. Got a lot of . Herschel definite got out of her shell. I saw it inside of her. But raise made it to the Naval Academy, like he wanted, but he suffered a hernia that never healed properly. Eventually, he had to withdraw, without graduating. He didnt join the navy, though. Then, in 2014, brigade oh and race married. Very soon, she was back in with her son. Everyone was thrilled when the baby came. We were all excited. We sit there, like when we were little, and we had a little dull, and we hold my nephew, we take turns. You know, i take care of him, while she sleeping on trying to rest, watching her Learning Experience being a mom for the first time, how she wanted to be. It was beautiful. Then, just before her son turned to, brig eta got sick. Soon, she could barely pick up a child. Your daughter is getting weaker, and weaker and you can barely walk. She was losing a vision. She was losing everything. Now, in the hospital, toxicologist, jeff liu point, developed a chilling suspicion about what was wrong with the bridge eta. Were all just like, you think, oh my god. Coming up, our wherein devastating diagnosis. Highly toxic, highly toxic. This is your very first case. Yeah. Growing danger at the hospital. And a sudden alert at the fbi. Were notified, immediately, thats something were very concerned about. When dateline continues. Concerned about. When dateline continues hey, do you know if i work sunday . Sure do clover does that. Who are you . Hes from clover. Clover does that so i can do this. I like that green. Chef, can we hire another hostess . Umm. Psst. Yeah. I was gonna add an exclamation point. And one chicken salad. Anything else . Yeah, do you also take orders online . Yeah, we do that. Yeah, we do. Thank you. Clover does that. This is really good. Secure payments, the tools you need, people who can help, we do that. Talk to a clover Business Consultant today as a business owner, your bottom line people who can help, is always top of mind. So start saving by switching to the mobile service designed for Small BusinessComcast Business mobile. Flexible data plans mean you can get unlimited data or pay by the gig. All on the most reliable nationwide network. With no Line Activation Fees or term contracts. Saving you up to 500 a year. And its only available to comcast Business Internet customers. So boost your bottom line by switching today. Like any good detective, doctor Comcast Business. Powering possibilities. ™ jeff low point was keeping his mind open. Letting the clues lead him to a theory, about why it might be killing brigida. I just had to figure out whats wrong, and get the treatment started. Most of her symptoms couldve been caused by a range of toxic chemicals, like arsenic, cadmium or sees medium. But, to dr. Liu point, one particular symptom stood out. Sudden hair loss. Thats the telltale sign. If you tell them, you have a young woman whos lost her hair and, now cant walk because her feet hurt so, volumes on a list. It straight out the books. That leon is a heavy metal, Atomic Number 81, on the periodic table of elements. It was discovered late 1800s, and quickly began being used medically, early 1900s, you wanted a job to lose their hair, you would give them valium. Oh my god. Doctor low point to also knew, for decades, dalian had another use, as an ingredient in rat poison. It was really good as a road and decide. It was outlined in the 1970s. Its really good at killing things, at the end of the day. Highly toxic,. You had never treated anybody else for thallium poisoning. No. This was your very first case. Yeah. Yet, there is no quick way to confirm mrs. Sufficient. Hospitals rarely see patients with thallium poisoning, and dont have a way to test for it. So, no hospital is just going to put a drop of blood and have a come back, yes, thallium. So you have to send these things away. Now, im looking at a two or threeday delay. Days that, he knew, bring it might not. Half we have a very scary situation, where we have a test thats infrequently reported, that i need now, that is the send out. Its scary, its serious, its been frequently done, and its exotic. Youre in a race against time, when it comes to saving her life. Yeah. Im trying to advocate all these different people, lots of hours on the phone. Trying to get somebody on the phone saying, this was going to die. As soon as we sent the test, we said, how do we get the antidote . He wanted to get ready as soon as results came in. What is the antidote . So, the antidote is called oppression blue. Youve probably seen Impression Blue in paint. Yes, paint. Its been used as a pigment, since the 1700s. You can see it here, in Vincent Van Goghs starry night. It wasnt until 1965 that scientists discovered Prussian Blue could be uses antidote. It works by speeding up elimination of certain poison, such as thallium. While you cant buy blue paint in any is nearly impossible to find. So, we started calling pharmacies around town, a different places. We started calling the navy, or we called our local Public Health people. We got in touch with the cdc, and we finally find storage. Theyre all confidential stored sites, but we found one. Prussian blue its so hard to find, because its also an antidote for radiation poisoning. The u. S. Government keeps it under close guard, stockpiled in case of a nuclear attack. So, no one wants to give me an antidote before proven him. Because, we dont just throw around Prussian Blue. We have several tripwire set up, in this case the Prussian Blue patient was in san diego, and we were notified immediately that a production order. John cale is a Special Agent with the fbi, and san diego. His focus is weapons of mass destruction. A request for the antidote to thallium, but his office in alert. I