GRAND FORKS (AP) - An Army Corps of Engineers employee says he developed a rare skin condition while volunteering in Afghanistan two years ago, and he believes the corps should do more to help him.

Don Speulda, 64, of Grand Forks, said the three-week deployment left him seriously ill. He said no one has found a cure for his disease.

His medical records indicate he suffers from nummular dermatitis, which causes a red, dime-size rash, accompanied by an intense itching or "burning, needle-like sensation."

Speulda is a former U.S. Army corporal and a 20-year corps employee who works as a construction-site inspector for the Grand Forks dike system. He said he does not regret volunteering for the overseas assignment.

"I felt I might have made a difference in the little time I was there," he said. "I regret getting the rash."

Speulda said he gets workers compensation benefits, but he believes the corps should have done more.

"They should have taken care of it from the beginning, not make me use my own time and money to get treatment," Speulda said.

Though painful, Speulda's illness is not contagious, said Dr. Michael Kilpatrick, a deputy director in the federal Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs.

The cause of Speulda's skin rash is unknown, which makes it difficult to cure and difficult to tell whether Speulda may have had it in his body before he was deployed, Kilpatrick said.

"My heart goes out to this man for serving his country in Afghanistan and for serving his country in the Army Corps of Engineers," he said. "Not everybody does that."

The corps said in a statement that civilian employees returning from deployment in support of military operations do not qualify for the same medical benefits as those of active-duty military personnel. Speulda is entitled to workers compensation and emergency care at a military facility, but not routine treatment, Kilpatrick said.

In Kabul, Speulda was in charge of inspecting the construction site of a training facility for the Afghan army. He believes something in the dust, possibly some sort of residual chemical, triggered the rash.

"I didn't do physical labor, but I was in contact with dust because it was all over the place," Speulda said.

Speulda said he used up his sick and annual leave, and his frustration is rising along with his medical bills.