I know someone asked me about a Lyme literate doctor in the midwest. Found one.
Just a caution here! an RN’s jmho…
Remember, there is no such thing as “Chronic Lyme Disease” and all infectious disease doctors know how to treat true Lyme. Long term antibiotics are not appropriate for the post lyme disease syndrome of symptoms that some folks may attribute to it. Doctors may be called “literate” because they are willing to do what YOU want or think you need. Or are willing to do it for other reasons.
This does not make them a “good” doctor.
Be careful.
all infectious disease doctors know how to treat Lyme successfully??? Righhhhhht, and I have this bridge to sell you.
While I do agree that some “lyme literate” doctors are just blowing smoke, I must disagree that Lyme is always successfully treated first time. Most of the best infectious disease doctors in this area agree that it is over diagnosed/treated but they do agree that in 10% it seems to still be there and warrants further treatment. Is it coinfection? reinfection? Don’t know and it still isn’t definitively proven for either camp.
[QUOTE=wateryglen;6537964]
Remember, there is no such thing as “Chronic Lyme Disease” and all infectious disease doctors know how to treat true Lyme. Long term antibiotics are not appropriate for the post lyme disease syndrome of symptoms that some folks may attribute to it. Doctors may be called “literate” because they are willing to do what YOU want or think you need. Or are willing to do it for other reasons.
This does not make them a “good” doctor.
Be careful.[/QUOTE]
Sure there is no chronic Lyme and sure all infectious disease doctors know how to treat it. That’s why my daughter was bedridden for two years (while being treated by 4 different infectious disease doctors) and I was barely functioning. BTW, after treatment by a doctor knowledgeable about that non-existent chronic Lyme, she’s taking 20 credits, working 30 hours a week as a reasearch assistant and applying to med school.
The doctor’s name I posted? Working with the University of Cincinnati on a Lyme disease research project.
let me clarify!
I never said Lyme is always successfully treated first time. There’s a big difference between a repeated 30 day course (or oral+IV meds0 and the sometimes years of oral ab’s that are sometimes prescribed. OF COURSE, there are reinfections/coinfections/wrong ab/wrong doses/different species of bacteria etc. I’m talking about the term Chronic as it applies to years.
Chronic infection is a whole lot different than chronic effects/chronic damage from a now cured infection. Once the bacteria are gone; the remaining damages are absolutely serious and can be quite problematic as you describe. There can be lifelong effects from that infection. But it isn’t a Chronic Lyme disease or chronic infection., It’s chronic damage. NOT the same thing. and does NOT require long term antibiotics as some Lyme “literate” MD/s would have you believe.
Once the bacteria are killed; they are gone. The damage from their former presence remains. Arthritis, heart disease,neurologic deficits, etc. Antibiotics don’t help damage.
Does this help?
Watery glen, are you a doctor? Do you have published research that leads you to make definitive judgments on whether or not chronic Lyme exits? If you do, I would like to see the research.
You should start your search with Columbia University’s Lyme and Tick Borne Disease Research Center. For example, here is an abstract of a recent study which shows persistence after treatment. It’s the second abstract.
[URL=“http://www.columbia-lyme.org/research/abstracts.html”]http://www.columbia-lyme.org/research/abstracts.html
"The persistence of symptoms in Lyme disease patients following antibiotic therapy, and their causes, continue to be a matter of intense controversy. The studies presented here explore antibiotic efficacy using nonhuman primates. Rhesus macaques were infected with B. burgdorferiand a portion received aggressive antibiotic therapy 4–6 months later. Multiple methods were utilized for detection of residual organisms, including the feeding of lab-reared ticks on monkeys (xenodiagnosis), culture, immunofluorescence and PCR. Antibody responses to the B. burgdorferi-specific C6 diagnostic peptide were measured longitudinally and declined in all treated animals. B. burgdorferi antigen, DNA and RNA were detected in the tissues of treated animals. Finally, small numbers of intact spirochetes were recovered by xenodiagnosis from treated monkeys. These results demonstrate that B. burgdorferi can withstand antibiotic treatment, administered post-dissemination, in a primate host. Though B. burgdorferi is not known to possess resistance mechanisms and is susceptible to the standard antibiotics (doxycycline, ceftriaxone) in vitro, it appears to become tolerant post-dissemination in the primate host. This finding raises important questions about the pathogenicity of antibiotic-tolerant persisters and whether or not they can contribute to symptoms post-treatment. "
I wonder if they could do the same tests on the humans
because it does not say how they “recovered” the viral samples remaining in the primates.
My niece is a PHD in microbiology, does a lot with chemical/germ warfare. I’ll get back with you if she has an answer that isn’t classified.
That said, the damage from the disease, ie, 'symptoms" persist for years in some patients, depending on age, physical condition prior, other disease processes, etc.
A
Just sayin’!!
Nah, not a doc. Just an RN, BSN.
Had Lyme awhile back, pets too.
New England Journal of Medicine, National Institute of Health, hospital lectures/seminars, worked w/ Infectious Disease docs in my area of the country which has an epidemic of Lyme in both people & animals. Including mine.
Not engaging anyone with a “research” or “literate doctor” contest. Don’t need to. Was just sharing a caution or common misnomer. Carry on!
