Wilson On The Mend From Mysterious Illness

One thing is for certain: Ailing Congressman Joe Wilson does not have Lyme disease. In fact, doctors haven't been able to to determine what exactly has been plaguing Wilson the past couple of weeks.

But whatever mysterious viral infection or other malady that has caused Wilson to suffer a persistent fever for two weeks apparently has run its course. Wilson said in an interview with Kevin Cohen of WVOC-560AM on Friday afternoon that he was scheduled to be released from the Lexington Medical Center on Saturday.

Wilson said he as undergone a battery of tests with no clear-cut diagnosis.

"The infectious disease personnel here have gone through every type of fever consequence, and the goods news is they've been negative," Wilson said. "I'm learning things that hopefully will be helpful for other people. That is, it is not unusual to not be able to identify what the problem is and after a period of time it will simply go away. But here at Lexington Medical Center they have truly been treating me for everything."

Wilson added, "I'm doing much better," and said he anticipates a speedy recovery. The second-district Republican even got in a joke or two, and ended his brief interview on the political side, saying the country must not raise taxes if it expects to get out of its economic doldrums.

As for his illness, he explained that it all began about two weeks ago when he took two of his grandsons to the Pelion Peanut Party, and later attended a funeral. Being in the sun all day, Wilson said he believed he had simply overheated.

"Then I realized I had a fever, it was a low-grade fever," he said. A visit to his physician and a series of tests couldn't determine a cause. The persistent fever ultimately led to his admittance to the hospital on Monday for further tests and observation.

The original suspected culprit, Lyme disease, proved to be false, he said.

"Initially I thought it was due to a tick bite," he said. "I love working in the yard. But that wasn't it."

What Wilson thought was a bite, his doctor said was simply a rash. 

Now that he's beginning to feel better, Wilson expressed thanks for all the medical help he's received, and the love, support, and prayers from his family, friends and constituents. Soon, he hopes to be fully recovered and back to work, including his annual bus tour and town hall meetings, which had been postponed this week and rescheduled for next month.

"I truly enjoy the pledge I made to be accountable and accessible," he said.

"I've never been sick before," he said. "So it really has been a frustrating experience."