My DS is set to graduate in June and is being denied a commission in the Navy for medical reasons. He is perfectly healthy and an athlete at KP. The reason for the denial is Psoriasis. He does not have chronic psoriasis, he got a rash after having strep throat and Mono ( that went untreated by Patton) and was diagnosed with guttate psoriasis, which is caused by strep. His rash has been clear for quite some time, but even with a letter from his dermatologist stating that it is not chronic, he has still been denied the commission. Any help with getting him through this medical/waiver process would be greatly appreciated.
Help with Medical Waiver Needed!
- Thread starter Rhinofan
- Start date
kp2001
10-Year Member
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2006
- Messages
- 2,243
He needs to be in communication with the Naval Science Department. If he was originally disqualified at the commissioning exam then that is one thing, but I'm assuming you are writing because his waiver has also been denied. If that is true then that usually means an active duty specialist in the appropriate subspecialty has made a determination that the condition is not consistent with commissioned Service. Beyond that person there really isn't much one can do, except maybe the "nuclear" option of contacting your Congressional Representatives. If a waiver hasn't been submitted/requested/determined then there is still hope that one will be granted and your son simply needs to make sure that is happening.
Now, I'll give you more of the techinicalities...
Maybe, maybe not. We have no clue if he will develop the rash again. I'm no expert in dermatologic or immunologic diseases; however, from my short reading it does appear that Guttate psoriasis can recur. Conditions with the possibility of recurrence tend to be more difficult to get waivered, not necessarily impossible.
The treatment for Mono is usually rest, not sure what more Patton could have done there. If you're talking about the Strep portion the treatment for that is almost always based on the results of the Rapid Strep test.
Now, I'll give you more of the techinicalities...
Maybe, maybe not. We have no clue if he will develop the rash again. I'm no expert in dermatologic or immunologic diseases; however, from my short reading it does appear that Guttate psoriasis can recur. Conditions with the possibility of recurrence tend to be more difficult to get waivered, not necessarily impossible.
The treatment for Mono is usually rest, not sure what more Patton could have done there. If you're talking about the Strep portion the treatment for that is almost always based on the results of the Rapid Strep test.
Actually the psoriasis isn't caused by the Strep throat, the strep throat uncovers an underlying autoimmune disease. (semantics, but important for understanding why it could be disqualifying)
This comes up often, unfortunately most civilian physicians don't understand the nuance and issues surrounding military medicine. This is one of the top reasons why we have military medical departments and don't simply rely on the civilian healthcare sector to provide care for our Service Members. The letter may help, but in reality it's going to be a military physician who makes the determination.
There's not much to do beyond making sure his waiver request was submitted. If the waiver was submitted then it's time to sit back and wait. If a final determination of "no" has already been reached and he really wants to commission then one can always contact their Representative. Be aware that even if he gets the go ahead for commissioning he may be restricted to what areas he can go into (eg No Aviation, No Dive, No XYZ) and that may make his desire for commissioning less.
Thank you kp2001, I appreciate your input. Much to think about. The reason I said that Patton missed the Strep was because DS went to Patton three times with a sore throat and developing rash and he was told it was something that needed to run it's course. The rash worsened and he was sent to a dermatologist in town. That is when they learned of the guttate psoriasis and someone at Patton actually told him that he would probably get kicked out of KP. This all occurred second tri of his Junior year. Finally they did the first strep test, and it came back positive. They also did blood work and found that he had mono as well. Throughout the entire illness and late diagnosis, he never missed a class and competed in athletics events! I can't help but feel that if the guttate psoriasis was diagnosed early, the rash would have been minor and resolved quickly without the need to visit the dermatologist in town.
kp2001
10-Year Member
- Joined
- Jun 9, 2006
- Messages
- 2,243
Quite possibly! However, it wouldn't have made a difference for what is going on right now. It's not the severity of what happened that the Navy would be concerned about, it is more the fact of it's presence. More of a binary (yes/no) issue than one of "how bad was it."
I wish I could give you a better idea of how I feel this will play out in the end, but this particular issue is one I haven't seen come across the board before so I can't even begin to speculate.