Assistant Principal Jerry Berkson is hospitalized due to severe neurological symptoms, but he is expected to recover completely over the next few months, doctors said.

Doctors have diagnosed Berkson’s ailment to be myeloenchephalitis, an inflammation of the central nervous system, Berkson said to The Paly Voice who visited him at Kaiser Hospital hospital in Redwood City last Saturday, May 22. The underlying cause of his condition is unknown, but is likely to be some sort of virus, according to Berkson.

Berkson was initially admitted to the hospital on Sunday, May 16 due to difficulty moving his lower body. He drove himself to Kaiser Hospital, where his condition worsened for the first two days. Berkson lost all sensation and movement in his legs.

“The first two days were the scariest,” said Berkson’s father, who was at his son’s bedside when The Paly Voice came to speak with the younger Berkson.

Berkson also began to suffer from double vision and occasionally wears an eye patch over one eye for relief.

“The double vision is so bad right now that I don’t even bother watching TV,” the younger Berkson said, gesturing to the television that hangs from his hospital room wall.

Doctors are currently performing plasmapheresis, or the removal and treatment of blood plasma, as well as steroid treatment, to relieve the inflammation in Berkson’s spinal cord. Berkson is already regaining both movement and sensation in his legs, he said.

Berkson said that he is expected to remain hospitalized for seven to eight more days. After leaving, he will likely have to undergo physical therapy before regaining full functionality of his lower body.

Despite his condition, Berkson remains upbeat and optimistic.

“He sounds just like the old Jerry Berkson,” Assistant Principal Todd Feinberg said.

Despite these improvements, Berkson said that he does not expect to return to school by the end of the year.

With Berkson out, his fellow assistant principals Feinberg and Kim Diorio have been performing extra administrative duties.