Archive for the ‘Lyme’ Category

Lyme Disease Skin Rash Puzzles Doctors, Leads to Misdiagnoses

https://danielcameronmd.com/lyme-disease-skin-rash-misdiagnoses/

LYME DISEASE SKIN RASH PUZZLES DOCTORS, LEADS TO MISDIAGNOSES

Patient with Lyme disease skin rash

Lyme disease can cause an atypical skin rash that may be mistakenly attributed to another illness, as this case report demonstrates. In their article, Suzuki and colleagues describe a 43-year-old woman who developed a rash which puzzled doctors and led to several misdiagnoses before Lyme disease was correctly identified.

By 
 

Lyme disease can cause an atypical skin rash, which may be overlooked by clinicians. In this case report, a 43-year-old woman, who was an avid gardener and lived in Wisconsin, developed pink papules behind her right knee.1  Over the next several days, the rash “evolved into painless vesicles with surrounding faint erythema.” She also developed fever, chills, neck pain and malaise.

Diagnoses: shingles, cellulitis, necrotizing fasciitis

Doctors initially suspected shingles (Herpes Zoster) but treatment with valacyclovir, an antiviral medication, did not improve the skin rash or symptoms. “The blisters increased in size and showed purple discoloration,” the authors wrote.

The doctors then diagnosed her with cellulitis, a bacterial skin infection which also causes a skin rash. She was prescribed ceftriaxone, followed by cephalexin and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. But the woman remained ill.

She was then referred for evaluation for suspected necrotizing fasciitis, an inflammation of the vessel walls.  At this time, she had a fever of 101.3°F.

“The atypical appearance of skin rash might confuse physicians with many differential diagnoses, such as spider bite, herpes zoster, bullous cellulitis, necrotizing fasciitis, and so on.”

Additionally:

“Physical examination showed blister and a surrounding round erythematous patch at the right popliteal fossa and right inguinal lymphadenopathy,” the authors wrote.

Lyme disease skin rash

The woman was diagnosed clinically with “early Lyme disease with bullous erythema migrans.”

“Given the season, geographic location, outdoor activity, and progression despite treatment for cellulitis and shingles, she was clinically diagnosed with early Lyme disease,” the authors report.

The woman was treated for Lyme disease with a 10-day course of doxycycline and her skin rash resolved.

Laboratory tests for Lyme disease were negative – a common occurrence with early Lyme disease.

“The atypical appearance of skin rash might confuse physicians with many differential diagnoses, such as spider bite, herpes zoster, bullous cellulitis, necrotizing fasciitis, and so on,” the authors point out.

Editor’s comments:  I have seen rashes described in this article in my Lyme disease patients. I am concerned when a patient is diagnosed with shingles, cellulitis or necrotizing vasculitis before Lyme disease is considered as a possible cause of an atypical skin rash.

If uncertain about the root cause of the rash, I will typically treat patients with a combination of medications including an antiviral agent and an antibiotic that is effective in treating cellulitis, a spider bite and Lyme disease.
References:
  1. Suzuki H, Carlson JR, Matsumoto E. 43-Year-Old Female With Fever and Bullous Skin Lesion. Clin Infect Dis. Dec 17 2020;71(10):2763-2764. doi:10.1093/cid/ciaa206

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**Comment**

Everyone knows that delayed treatment for Lyme/MSIDS is causing chronic/persistent symptoms, yet it continually appears doctors would rather diagnose patients with anything other than Lyme/MSIDS.  It’s almost like they want to run through a litany of other causes first, treat for those, and finally if nothing works throw up the white flat and admit it’s tick-borne illness.

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Please remember that those getting the rash is highly variable and certainly not a sure thing.  If you get it, it is diagnostic for Lyme – no testing needed; however, if you don’t get it, you can still be infected:

Rashes-larger-blog-4

Category:

Lyme, research

Know Your Ticks

https://www.globallymealliance.org/tick-table/

Know your ticks

Easy to read table shows the most common ticks found in the U.S. that transmit pathogens to humans.
Note: only a partial list. To learn more about tick-bite prevention and how to be Tick AWARE, click here

Click here to download the Tick Table

Tick Table

For more:

Remember, in Wisconsin, ticks are found in every county in the state. Researchers are also finding them in bright, open, mowed lawns.

Category:

Alpha Gal Meat Allergy, Anaplasmosis, Bartonella, Borrelia Miyamotoi (Relapsing Fever Group), Ehrlichiosis, Lyme, Mycoplasma, Parasite Treatment, Rickettsia, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Tickborne Relapsing Fever, Ticks, Transmission, Tularemia, Viruses

Pulsing Antibiotics, Diet and Itchy Rashes, and Insomnia

https://www.globallymealliance.org/blog/dear-lyme-warrior-help-1

Dear Lyme Warrior…Help!

by Jennifer Crystal on May 26, 2021

Every few months, Jennifer Crystal devotes a column to answering your questions. Do you have a question for Jennifer? If so, email her at lymewarriorjennifercrystal@gmail.com.

Is it helpful to pulse antibiotics?

Pulsing is a method of antibiotic administration where the patient takes the medication for a certain amount of time (for example, two weeks) and then stops it for a period (say, another two weeks), and then repeats the cycle. Some people have found great success with this method (Steven Phillips, MD talks about it in his new book Chronic: The Hidden Cause of the Autoimmune Pandemic and How to Get Healthy Again). He writes about patients who were on antibiotics all the time for years and only reached a certain level of wellness, but then felt completely better after switching to a pulsed regimen. Pulsing allows the body to detox, especially after intense Herxheimer reactions, and gives the gut a break, too.

That said, pulsing doesn’t work for everyone. Some feel that doing so allows the spirochetes to build up a stronger load during the off-period, making them harder to kill (and causing worse Herxheimer reactions) during the on-periods. My own body has difficulty adjusting to any kind of on-off regimen (for example, if I’m weaning off a medication, it never works for me to take it every other day; this just causes a jerking effect). For others, that method works just fine. The bottom line is that you need to speak with your Lyme Literate Medical Doctor (LLMD) to see if pulsing is the right choice for you, and you may need to do a little trial-and-error to find out.

I’ve been battling Lyme for four months and just started getting rashes and hives on my legs at random times. It seems it may coincide with something I ate. Did you have any trigger foods, and did you find anything to help rashes and hives long-term?

Lyme is an inflammatory disease. As I explain in my post “Stop the Itching! Lyme and Hives,” Lyme can cause an inflammatory response anywhere in the body, manifesting as redness, swelling, heat, pain, or loss of function. I started getting hives four years after getting a tick bite, but it would be another four years before I got accurately diagnosed and started treatment. Once I did get proper antibiotic treatment, the hives stopped.

Before then, itchiness and redness could sometimes be triggered by exercise. After a run, my legs might turn bright red and grow incredibly itchy. The reaction was never triggered by food, but one of two things may be going on for you. You may simply be having an allergic reaction to something you’re eating (try to find a common denominator in your meals, and see an allergist who can test for food allergies). Or, maybe you are eating an inflammatory food that is exacerbating the inflammation you’re already experiencing from Lyme. (See my post “The Lyme Diet” for information on inflammatory and anti-inflammatory foods). It helped me to switch to an anti-inflammatory diet, which I’ve been on for over a decade. What helped the most with my inflammation, though, was proper treatment with antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medication. If you are not already seeing a LLMD, I encourage you to find one who can address your systemic inflammation, check for co-infections, and help you consider dietary changes. (To find a good LLMD in your area, please click here).

Before sleep medication, can you describe your insomnia? Was it every night? For how long?

Once tick-borne illnesses crosses the blood-brain barrier, they can cause a host of neurological issues, including sleep disturbances. Before I was accurately diagnosed with and treated for Lyme disease, babesiosis, and ehrlichiosis, I had horrendous insomnia. At one point, I was literally awake for weeks. I tried everything: meditating, counting sheep, using lavender oil, taking over-the-counter sleep aids, but nothing worked. Despite my exhaustion, my brain would not turn off. I had word and song iteration—words and songs playing in my head like a mash-up, over and over again. It felt like my body was in park and my brain was in overdrive.

Some nights I did sleep, but it wasn’t restful. I experienced hallucinogenic nightmares that left me more tired when I woke up than when I went to sleep. Sleep disturbances went on for a couple years before I was accurately diagnosed, and persisted (with some improvements) for a few months during the start of treatment. These issues came back when I relapsed. The first step in getting them under control was to treat the infections that were causing it. I saw a sleep specialist who did neurofeedback, taught me good sleep hygiene, and figured out, through some trial-and-error, the best medication to help me sleep.

Writer

Jennifer Crystal

Opinions expressed by contributors are their own. Jennifer Crystal is a writer and educator in Boston. Her work has appeared in local and national publications including Harvard Health Publishing and The Boston Globe. As a GLA columnist for over six years, her work on GLA.org has received mention in publications such as The New Yorker, weatherchannel.com, CQ Researcher, and ProHealth.com. Jennifer is a patient advocate who has dealt with chronic illness, including Lyme and other tick-borne infections. Her memoir about her medical journey is forthcoming. Contact her via email below.

Email: lymewarriorjennifercrystal@gmail.com

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**Comment**

This post took me back in time.

The crazy manifestations of this complex multi-faceted illness can not be overstated.  They are unbelievable.  This is one of the reasons main-stream medicine thinks we are all nuts.  I’m sure it appears that way when we frantically diatribe through our litany of bizarre symptoms.  It truly takes a special practitioner to quietly listen to patients, believing that there is a real, physiological cause behind it all.  To believe that thousands upon thousands of patients are saying similar things are all crazy is a lazy way out.

I’ve pulsed antibiotics successfully and taken them everyday successfully.

Pulsing is based upon the fact that Lyme disease has a 4-week cycle, where every 4 weeks patients experience a symptom flair. Burgdorfer found this in mice studies, and IGeneX found the same thing in urine antigen studies.Borrelia grow and are active, then become inactive.Four weeks later they activate.This has been shown recently in vitro. Think of Bb as a slow relapsing fever.This nuance is important because antibiotics only kill during the active phase.You need a minimum of a month to bracket a whole generation cycle. 

Slightly different than pulsing, is something called “cycling”, used when patients reach a plateau. You discontinue antibiotics until symptoms return.  Then, when symptoms return, go to full treatment until symptoms are gone again. Dr. Burrascano states that many patients become symptom free after 4 of these cycles.  He used this on himself as well with success.  Burrascano found 3 other physicians doing the exact same thing with patients. This approached worked for all of them despite the different geographical areas they were in.

But, like all things Lyme/MSIDS, this doesn’t work with every patient.  But – it’s still worth trying!

My LLMD states Lyme/MSIDS causes all sorts of rashes – everywhere on the body.  I had one that looked like ring-worm that was on my derrière.  It expanded outwardly until finally it disappeared.  I believe treatment resolved it.

Rashes-larger-blog-4

A reminder that the EM rash is diagnostic for Lyme.  If you have the EM rash, you have Lyme, but many never see or get the rash.  This graph beautifully demonstrates that getting the “classic” EM rash is highly variable.

Insomnia is a real pain.  

For more:

Category:

Lyme, Sleep

Lawmakers Push for Lyme Disease Research as Tick Population Climbs

https://www.rollcall.com/2021/07/14/lawmakers-push-for-lyme-disease-research-as-tick-population-climbs/

Lawmakers push for Lyme disease research as tick population climbs

Changing climate conditions help drive up number of cases, as infecting insects thrive in warm, humid environments
Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne illness in the United States, appearing in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. (Edwin Remsberg/VWPics via Getty Images file photo)
Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne illness in the United States, appearing in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. (Edwin Remsberg/VWPics via Getty Images file photo)
By Ariel Cohen

Posted July 14, 2021 

Tick-borne disease is on the rise across the nation, and lawmakers are pushing to invest more this year in diagnostics and research to help the hundreds of thousands of Americans diagnosed with Lyme disease each year.

Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne illness in the United States, appearing in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Roughly 476,000 Americans are diagnosed with Lyme every year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The number of actual infections is likely higher, experts say, as many infected people do not receive a test and Lyme disease tests are often inaccurate.

Although under diagnosed, Lyme costs the U.S. health care system more than $1.3 billion in direct U.S. medical costs, according to estimates, and tens of billions more in indirect medical costs.

“People know somebody who has Lyme, or they have constituents that have come to talk about it, and they all have the same story: It’s very difficult to diagnose and very difficult to treat,” Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a Congressional Lyme Caucus member, said in describing a recent groundswell of Capitol Hill interest.

(See link for article)

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**Comment**

The problem with this article is many of the premises are inaccurate yet continually touted as established facts.

  1. Ticks are marvelously ecoadaptive.  They are impervious to weather.  If they are stressed they will hide under leaf-litter, snow, mulch, plants, etc.  When conditions are better, out they come. Independent research has proven this but has been ignored because the ‘climate change’ agenda is powerful and backed by a lot of money and powerful people/institutions who profit from it.
  2. Ticks are not the only creatures to be concerned about, and the only source of transmission, yet again the sole focus upon ticks continues to this day.
  3. The fact there isn’t accepted treatment should indicate there is a sordid back-story that isn’t being told by our corrupt public health ‘authorities.’ Similarly to COVID, there are effective treatments (although admittedly individually determined) that continue to be ignored, censored, and denied.  This has gone on for over 40 years and continues to this day.
  4. The fact testing isn’t reliable also indicates a fundamental flaw in this story.  Due to the false stance taken on this complex illness, and the fact the only accepted research is done by a conflict-riddled Cabal, we remain and will continue to remain in the Dark Ages with Lyme/MSIDS.
  5. The federal government is always whining about needing more money, despite the fact the CDC’s operating budget has averaged about $7.2 billion per year since 2016. It’s budget was $10 billion in 2008 before Congressional investigations found that the agency wastes millions and spends lavishly.  For example, It spent:
    • $106 million on a visitor center
    • $5.1 million on audio-video integrations
    • $18 million on a video production studio
    • $1.7 million to “fact-check”television shows like “ER,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” and “House”
    • The CDC spent its AIDS and HIV Prevention fund in 2007 on erotic writing, a drag queen contest, and a San Francisco workshop called “how to flirt with greater finesse.”
    • The CDC is NOT a neutral government agency, and has its own private slush fund called the CDC Foundation. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has given $2.3 million so far to the CDC in 2021. You can see all Gates to CDC contributions here, and only the United States government gives more to the World Health Organization than the Gates Foundation.
    • The CDC Foundation’s other donors come from pharmaceutical companies and big tech firms such as Bayer, Facebook, GlaxoSmithKline and Merck. They sell drugs and don’t care about public health. These relationships are incestuous – for example, former CDC chief Julie Gerberding left her position at the CDC to become President of Merck’s vaccine division.
  6. Regarding the increasing tick population, it is highly probable our own government is partially if not wholly to blame. (This is another reason they push the climate agenda. It’s a slight of hand to stop us from asking relevant questions.)
  7. The reference to COVID must be addressed. The only reason it is considered a ‘pandemic’ is due to the WHO changing the definition 1 month before the Swine Flu ‘pandemic’ that wasn’t, and taking away the criteria that it is highly deadly – because COVID is not highly deadly, with the vast majority being asymptomatic or mild cases.
  8. The push for more federal funding to go to the exact people who have done nothing for Lyme/MSIDS patients for over 40 years is illogical.  I completely disagree that the “lack of funding contributes to major knowledge gaps surrounding the disease.”  What is causing major knowledge gaps is scientific bias and conflicts of interests.  Until those are dealt with, we will get no where.
  9. It is well established that early detection is imperative; however, doctors due to the IDSA guidelines continue to take a “wait and see” approach, delaying life-saving treatment.  These same people refuse to treat people with obvious Lyme rashes and make up all kinds of excuses.  And, of course, many never see or get the rash at all.
  10. While I surely do not have all the answers, one thing I do know: giving our corrupt public health ‘authorities’ more money to continue doing biased research is NOT the answer.  They’ve been using sick patients to raise monies for their own nefarious ends for far, far too long.  Insanity is doing something over and over and expecting different results. Time to take our precious pennies and put them toward independent research.

Category:

Activism, Lyme, Ticks

Lyme Brain & Fibro Fog: Natural Solutions Webinar

https://rawlsmd.com/webinars/lyme-brain-fibro-fog/?

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Lyme Brain & Fibro Fog

Live Webinar with Dr. Bill Rawls

Wednesday, July 21st
8pm EDT

Webinar can be viewed on any device

The physical symptoms of chronic Lyme disease and fibromyalgia are challenging on their own. But when your mental capacities start to waver, it can take levels of frustration and fear to a whole new level.

Why are Lyme and fibromyalgia sufferers so prone to brain and neurological symptoms, and what can you do to find effective and lasting relief?

Join an updated live webinar with Dr. Bill Rawls, author of the best-selling book Unlocking Lyme, who knows firsthand what it’s like to live with Lyme brain and fibro fog. He’ll explain why Lyme disease and fibromyalgia tend to target the brain, and share insights on the best herbs and other natural lifestyle remedies for overcoming symptoms and reducing the risk and severity of long-term degenerative cognitive conditions such as dementia.

You’ll learn exactly what you need to clear the fog and restore healthy cognitive and neurological function, so that you can get back to thinking and feeling like yourself again.

RESERVE MY SEAT »

In this webinar, Dr. Rawls will also discuss:

• Why cognitive symptoms like confusion, short-term memory loss, anxiety, anger, and depression are so common in chronic illness patients such as those with Lyme disease, fibromyalgia, and Long COVID.

• How microbes, inflammation, and immune dysfunction disrupt cognitive function

• The best herbs and natural remedies for restoring and protecting brain health

• Numerous insights during the live Q&A with Dr. Rawls

About Dr. Bill Rawls

Bill Rawls, M.D., is a physician and leading expert in Lyme disease, integrative health, and herbal medicine. In the middle of his successful medical career, Dr. Rawls’ life was interrupted by Lyme disease. In his journey to overcome it, he explored nearly every treatment possible – from conventional medicine to a range of alternative therapies. In the more than 12 years since his recovery, Dr. Rawls has helped thousands of patients find their path to healing from Lyme disease and chronic illness. He is the author of the best-selling book Unlocking Lyme, and the Medical Director of RawlsMD.com and Vital Plan, an online holistic health company and Certified B Corporation®.

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Category:

Herbs, Lyme, Psychological Aspects, Supplements, Treatment