Florida mother claims daughter paralyzed by flu shot

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A Florida mother thinks her daughter's paralysis from a rare inflammatory disease called ADEM may have been caused by a flu shot.

Mary Sue Grivna, 10, has been bedridden and mostly unable to speak since last November when she contracted a rare inflammatory disease known as ADEM.

"(The disease) can be triggered by a virus it high fever or by a vaccination," says her mother, Carla.

"It can just appear out of the blue or after maybe a surgical procedure," says Dr. Juan Dumois of All Children's Hospital. "And it's otherwise unexplainable."

Dr. Dumois says in rare cases ADEM can develop from a flu shot, but it's much more likely to develop from the flu. He doesn't recommend skipping the vaccine.

Most children with ADEM make a full recovery over time.