COVID-19 Integrative Support in Prevention & Early Interventions

April 7, 2020

https://www.karenvrchota.com/healthnews/2020/3/22/dr-vrchotas-shortlist-for-covid-19nbspprevention

COVID-19 Integrative Support in Prevention & Early Interventions

By Karen Vrchota, MD

The following is for educational purposes only, and not meant to replace usual medical care. Consult your own practitioner for specific, personal advice.

Looking for a ray of sunshine in this time of COVID-19 fear? While we don’t know everything we need to know, quite a bit of research is emerging with strategies that can support the body’s own immune system in self defense.

When considering possible interventions, I am reminded of a treatment found effective in reducing severity and death rate from the 1918 influenza pandemic. Fresh air, sunshine, good hygiene, and homemade masks were the mainstay in Camp Brooks emergency open-air hospital in Boston, for the treatment of influenza, which significantly reduced serious complications among patients, and decreased infection in medical staff.

Also recall how tuberculosis, one of the most difficult infections to treat, responded well in Sanatoriums to fresh air, sunshine, fun activities, stress reduction, and good nutrition.

Dr. Dean Ornish found that “lifestyle medicine” changed over 500 genes in three months, turning on health giving genes, and turning off disease causing genes. This was accomplished with:

  1. Plant based nutrition, eating 6-8 colorful servings of vegetables and fruit daily.

  2. Meditation 20 minutes twice daily. (I really like Headspace APP.

  3. Exercise 1 hour daily, stretching, strengthening, and aerobics.

  4. Connection with others, sharing about an issue important to you, and listening with empathy when another speaks.

And Pasteur, after arguing all of his life that microbes caused disease, abated, saying “The microbe is nothing, the milieu is everything”. So, be sure to do everything you can to increase general wellness.

In addition to following good hygiene, and social distancing, and bandana over face (maybe sprayed with Argentyn 23) when going out, what can be done to support the body in prevention of viral infection? There are so many resources popping up, including this masterlist of antivirals.

It can be overwhelming to comb through all the information, so here’s my short list of COVID-19 prevention strategies:

  • Vitamin C 1000-3000 mg every 4-6 hours, 3-5x day. Reduce dose for diarrhea. Ascorbic acid crystals or powder 4000mg/tsp 3-5gm dissolved in 12 ounces of water. Drink over 30-60 minutes 4-5 times daily. Use buffered Ascorbate if GI upset occurs.Capsules and tablets work great too, just a little harder to get serum levels high.

  • Zinc 15 mg 3x day-50 mg once daily. Zinc is a known inhibitor of other coronaviruses and may impair the replication of COVID-19. However, zinc is difficult to get into your cells. Supplemental ionospheres could escort zinc into cells, some options being Quercitin 600-1200mg 2x day, or EGCG from green tea or Luteolin or Quinine from tonic water cinchona powder (1 tsp in cup cold water, simmer for 10 minutes, cool, sweeten with stevia and lemon or lime.)

  • Elderberry 1 tsp tincture 3x daily. Studies have found that Elderberry (Sambucus nigra) extracts inhibits infectious bronchitis virus replication. Use early, but discontinue if inflammation is present as it may cause lung problems.

  • Vitamin A with beta carotene 5000-7500IU/day

  • Vitamin E with mixed tocopherol 400IU in morning, and Vitamin E tocotrienols 125 mg in evening to reduce inflammation and support healthy cell membranes. Do not take together, as tocopherols block tocotrienol action.

  • Respirin, a combination of 23 Chinese herbs I have found helpful in every respiratory condition that I have seen in the past 5 years. 3-6 every 8 hours, 15 min before or one hour after food. No experience yet with this virus.

  • ProBoost, Thymic Protein A, has been helpful in immune support for those with viral or bacterial infections. I am taking one 3x/day sublingual, let it dissolve.

  • ViraClear is a homeopathic remedy that may support immune response to respiratory viruses.

If you have an active infection, modify the strategy:

  • Increase Vitamin C to 3-5000mg every 2-4 hours to bowel tolerance. Use Ascorbic Acid if tolerated, used buffered ascobate or EsterC if stomach gets irritated with straight Ascorbic Acid.When the body is sick, it needs more Vitamin C.

In China they found early “high dose” intravenous Rx Vitamin C (12-24 gms infused over 24 hours) given as soon as pneumonia was diagnosed helped shorten the illness and left lungs in a healthier state than those not given IVC.  But other Orthomolecular experts have been using Vitamin C 25-50 gms in sterile water, buffered with calcium chloride, magnesium chloride, and potassium chloride, infused over 2-3 hours against many severe viruses similar to Covid-19. Dr. Cheng in Wuhan uses these doses when conditions are desperate, with good success in many cases. Interested physicians and pharmacists could gather more information from this study by Dr. Paul S. Anderson or this protocol established by the Riordan Clinic.

  • Continue zinc,  Quercitin, vitamins A, C, and E tocotrienols. 

  • Stop Elderberry, as it stimulates the production of cytokines and there may be a risk of creating a “cytokine storm” of over activated immune cells that can cause additional tissue damage.

There are studies underway examining a few different prescription treatments:

We are on the cusp of spring, and recent research has shown for every degree of increase in temperature and humidity, there is a corresponding decline in COVID-19 cases. Warm air and sunshine may naturally reduce the spreading of COVID-19. One strategy is to institute social distancing until warm weather is well established, then relax restrictions, and monitor the spread. We won’t really know how much the virus is spreading until there is a cheap, easy test available for everyone.

The best we can do right now is eat whole unprocessed foods, get 8 hours of sleep daily, meditate, exercise, and connect with family and friends outdoors, while following some basic nutritional support. And, as always, consult your integrative practitioner on what course of action may be best for you.

______________

For more:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/27/the-truth-about-hydroxychloroquine-plaquenil-in-the-treatment-of-covid-19/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/12/convalescent-plasma-therapy-tested-on-critically-ill-covid-19-patients/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/02/28/coronavirus-how-bad-can-it-get-includes-treatments-disulfiram-is-one/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/02/13/washington-doctors-successfully-treat-coronavirus/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/09/coronavirus-lyme/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/10/corona-virus-lyme-disease-drs-bock-rawls/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/02/22/how-to-protect-yourself-your-family-from-infections/

 

 

Category:

Treatment, Viruses

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Breast Cancer & Lyme Disease: One Woman’s Message

https://danielcameronmd.com/breast-cancer-lyme-disease-patient/

BREAST CANCER AND LYME DISEASE: ONE WOMAN’S MESSAGE

cancer in lyme disease patient

Rarely, do we read about patients with cancer also suffering from Lyme disease. But many do. A courageous 46-year-old woman shares her heartbreaking story of battling terminal breast cancer. In the article, published by Glamour magazine, she describes her frustration with medicine and how her experiences as a Lyme disease patient affected her decisions in seeking medical help.

By

The woman, a mother to three boys, initially assumed a lump in her breast was due to Lyme disease. “Before I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I thought a lump I had found was part of my Lyme disease. I thought, ‘Okay, let me just watch this and see if it goes away over the next month’,” she tells Glamour reporter Jillian Kramer.

She explains that having cancer had never occurred to her and as a Lyme disease patient she had become accustomed to being judged and was worried about how medical professionals would view her complaints.

“I’d gone through a long bout with Lyme disease and had a lot of experience being blown off by doctors,” she says. “I had even gotten into the habit of blowing things off. I’d say, It’s probably nothing.

“I’d put it [breast lump] off for such a long time, thinking that people would think I was being silly.”

After her diagnosis of Stage IIIC breast cancer, the woman underwent chemotherapy, radiation, and a double mastectomy. Unfortunately, she relapsed a month after completing treatment and was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer.

She cautions others. “Even if you’re worried about being wrong, see a doctor.”

Editor’s Note: This courageous woman passed away in December of 2019 but her story is an important reminder to readers, particularly Lyme disease patients, to always follow-up with your doctor when a new symptom emerges. Do not assume a new symptom is Lyme-related, even when you’ve had a history of Lyme disease.

References:
  1. Kramer, Jillian.This Mom Has Terminal Breast Cancer, But She’s Still Fighting for Her Kids. Glamour magazine, October 31, 2019.

________________

**Comment**

Such a disheartening story, although not surprising.  I know many Lyme/MSIDS patients who have actually developed a fear of white lab coats due to being abused by medical professionals who say the most damaging things to them.  Patients are still being told they are “making up” their illness or just wanting attention:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/05/27/have-you-been-told-its-all-in-your-head-the-new-biology-of-mental-illness/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/05/27/uk-woman-isolated-pumped-full-of-anti-psychotics-told-its-all-in-her-head-until-finally-diagnosed-with-lyme/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2017/09/21/its-all-in-your-head-until-finally-a-lyme-diagnosis/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/02/16/lyme-is-all-in-your-head-a-wake-up-call-to-mental-health-professionals/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/11/29/its-all-in-your-head-medicines-silent-epidemic/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/11/22/differentiating-psychosomatic-somatopsychic-multisystem-illnesses-and-medical-uncertainty/

Category:

Lyme, Uncategorized

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr: ‘Bill Gates Couldn’t Even Save Windows From Viruses’ – He Needs to ‘Sit Down’

https://newspunch.com/robert-f-kennedy-jr-bill-gates-couldnt-save-windows-from-viruses-sit-down/

Robert F. Kennedy Jr: ‘Bill Gates Couldn’t Even Save Windows From Viruses’- He Needs To ‘Sit Down’

April 6, 2020 Baxter Dmitry
(See link for article)
Telling quote:
Should we trust the man who has openly stated the world population should be reduced by 10 to 15 percent, or should we remain skeptical like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and tell Gates to “sit down”?
___________________

For more on Gates and his involvement with COVID-19:  

Another great read exposing how Gates uses –
his philanthropy to control WHO, UNICEF, GAVI and PATH. Gates funds private pharmaceutical companies that manufacture vaccines, and a massive network of pharmaceutical industry front groups that broadcast deceptive propaganda, develop fraudulent studies, conduct surveillance and psychological operations against vaccine hesitancy and use Gates’ power and money to silence dissent and coerce compliance.  https://www.fort-russ.com/amp/2020/04/robert-f-kennedy-jr-exposes-bill-gates-vaccine-dictatorship-plan-cites-gates-twisted-messiah-complex/
Excerpt:

Idemia is a central company involved in supplying the infrastructure needs of most digital and biometric ID systems around the world. Idemia also makes drivers licenses in the United States.

In 2019, Old-Thinker News reported that Bill Gates was pushing for India’s Aadhaar digital ID system, supported by Idemia, (now promoted to fight COVID-19) to expand around the world.

It’s not just a social credit score system spreading around the world from China that threatens the free people of the world; India’s Aadhaar National ID program has the full support of Bill Gates and the World Bank as a model for other countries to follow.

To read about WHO and our own government talk about ‘contact tracing’ where they go door to door to check up on everyone (read comment section and watch Frieden in the video):  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/09/feds-eye-loosening-rules-to-allow-some-to-return-to-work/

Category:

Activism, vaccines

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Where’s the Evidence Supporting the Drastic Measures Against COVID-19?

April 6, 2020

https://torontoniansfortransparency.wordpress.com/2020/03/29/wheres-the-evidence-supporting-the-drastic-measures-against-covid-19/

Where’s the Evidence Supporting the Drastic Measures Against COVID-19?

Rosemary Frei, MSc, molecular biology; medical journalist for 22 years and now an investigative journalist

Summary

  • Death rates in China, Italy, South Korea from COVID are in the range of only 0.002% to 0.025% of the population.
  • Data being gathered about numbers of cases and deaths are severely lacking in quantity and quality. In addition the numbers that are available appear to be inflated by influential groups and websites, and then echoed by media.
  • The draconian measures being put in place for reducing COVID spread such as stringent ‘social distancing’ requirements combined with fines up to $100,000 for people who violate them, and also lock-downs in place for billions of people, are not evidence-based.
  • The societal and economic costs of these measures vastly outweigh their benefits to the population.

__________________

**Comment**

A lengthy but informative read that raises numerous issues and questions that authorities are completely ignoring.  Please read it in its entirety, but here’s some bullet-points as well as some additions of my own:

  • There’s a ton of inaccurate information coming from authorities, politicians, & scientists
  • There is weak evidence to support social distancing. Important quote:

“We actually do not have that much good evidence for these social-distancing methods,” said Dr. Kettner. “It was just a couple of reviews in the CDC [U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s] Emerging Infectious Diseases journal, which showed that although some of them might work, we don’t really know to what degree, and the evidence is pretty weak.” (Kettner is associate professor of Community Health Sciences & Surgery at University of Manitoba, former Chief Provincial Public Health Officer, and former Medical Director of the International Centre for Infectious Diseases.)

Thirteen studies show social distancing increases deaths:  https://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/13-studies-reveal-how-social-distancing-ie-social-isolation-can-increase-mortalit?

  • There’s a lack of solid data on how contagious it is, how many cases there are and how many deaths are directly caused by COVID-19. Important quote:

“We’re getting very crude numbers of cases and deaths, very little information about testing rates, contagious analysis, severity rates, who’s being hospitalised, who is in intensive care, who is dying, what are the definitions to decide if someone died of the coronavirus or just died with the coronavirus. There is so much important data that is very hard to get, to guide the decisions about how serious a threat is this.” Dr. Kettner (30 year career in public medicine)

  • Death rates in China, Italy, and South Korea (and other countries) are in the range of only 0.002% to 0.025% of the population. Recently, a U.S. study in which CDC Dr. Fauci, one of the authors, states: 

“This suggests that the overall clinical consequences of Covid-19 may ultimately be more akin to those of a severe seasonal influenza (which has a case fatality rate of approximately 0.1%) or a pandemic influenza (similar to those in 1957 and 1968) rather than a disease similar to SARS or MERS, which have had case fatality rates of 9 to 10% and 36%, respectively.” Dr. Fauci https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMe2002387

  • The mass isolation of billions of people is unwarranted. Only the most at-risk people and close associates should be in isolation.
  • While many businesses are severely affected large enterprises like Amazon, Costco, and Walmart are thriving due to panic buying behavior.
  • Event 201, sponsored by Bill and Melinda Gates, World Economic Forum and the Center for Health Security at Johns Hopkins involved a “global pandemic exercise.” The simulation involved a factitious new coronavirus ranging from mild flue to pneumonia, with the sickest people needing intensive care.
  • Event 201 participants addressed how to deal with “misinformation” circulating on the internet. Important quote:

Harrington also said “there needs to be a centralized response around the communications approach, that then is cascaded to informed advocates representing the NGO communities, the medical professionals, etcetera. … Centralized on an international basis. Because I think there needs to be a central repository of data, facts and key messages.” Matthew Harrington, Edelman’s Global President and Chief Operating Officer

  • Vaccines were discussed at Event 201, and Hasti Taghi chief of staff capacity at NBC Universal, noted that the anti-vaccine movement was very strong due to social media and therefore, they need to disseminate “the right information….to ensure the public has trust in the vaccines that we’re creating” against COVID-19.  Harrington agreed stating this recent strong resistance was a “beta” test for dealing with resistance to COVID-19 vaccines.
  • Also in attendance at Event 201 was Avril Haines, past assistant to the president and Principal Deputy National Security Adviser for the Obama administration, Deputy Director of CIA, Legal Advisor to National Security Council, who suggested daily briefings would work better than trying to control information to “flood the zone” from “trusted sources”at every level by community and faith based leaders and health care officials.  Harrington agreed and added the need to educate trusted local leaders in advance of a pandemic to ensure readiness.
  • Four months after Event 201 COVID-19 information started flowing simultaneously from the media showing COVID-19 to be the most serious threat to humanity.
  • Gates announces on March 13 he’s leaving Microsoft “to dedicate more time to philanthropic priorities including global health and development, education, and my increasing engagement in tackling climate change.”
  • Our World in Data, supported by the Gates Foundation that has an endowment of $52 billion has given more than $2.4 billion to the WHO since 2000. A Geneva-based NGO representative says Gates is “treated like a head of state, not only at WHO but also at G20,” and that Gates is one of the most influential people in public health. Gates’ focus in WHO is vaccines and medicines, which is ironic considering he doesn’t vaccinate his own children.  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/01/22/bill-gates-former-doctor-says-billionaire-refused-to-vaccinate-his-children/  The organization has a website that focuses on the doubling time of COVID-19 cases but doesn’t examine the rise, spread, and subsequent fall of the virus across countries.  Our World has a video that (falsely) states that COVID-19 cases is far higher than the flu and that it’s “much more dangerous,” much more contagious, and spreads faster. The narrator states “Horrible decisions will have to be made about who gets to live and who doesn’t.” 

A very crucial quote from the video states:

“Quarantines are not great to experience and certainly not popular. But they buy us — and especially the researchers working on medication and vaccination — crucial time,” the narrator assures viewers. “So if you are under quarantine, you should understand why and respect it.”

  • The author of the article points out glaring gaps in logic and the lack of evidence to back up all the trumped up assertions that testing, quarantine, and social distancing followed by a vaccine is the best approach.
  • The Gates Foundation is involved in the mass production of COVID-19 home testing kits and was a main sponsor of Event 201. The Gates Foundation donated $125 Million to Develop COVID-19 Vaccine.  He is also supporting work done at MIT, and Rice University working on ‘digital certificates’ – human-implantable ‘QUANTUM-DOT TATTOOS’ to identify those who have not been vaccinated.  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/03/gates-on-record-people-will-need-certificates-to-travel/
  • The author also points out a very important fact: the media completely downplays that the vast majority of coronavirus cases are benign.  Most people get sick briefly if at all. 
  • The author astutely points out that being exposed to viruses, bacteria, and other antigens strengthens the immune system and confers long-term immunity.  Even CDC’s Dr. Fauci states he would be “willing to bet anything that people who recover are really protected against reinfection.” https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-fauci-those-who-recover-will-be-immune-2020-3?  The author points out that all the fear panic purchasing of cleaning supplies is like “putting oil on a fire” and that those not exposed to COVID will be vulnerable to it in the future.  Even Mike Ryan, Executive Director of the WHO’s Emergency Services Program states,

“What we really need to focus on is finding those who are sick, those who have the virus, and isolate them — find their contacts and isolate them,” Ryan is quoted as saying in the interview. “The danger right now with the lock-downs … [is that] if we don’t put in place the strong public-health measures now, when those movement restrictions and lock-downs are lifted, the danger is the disease will jump back up.”

For an interesting video by the David Knight Show on Dr. Fauci:  https://www.brighteon.com/47e9607d-198f-4a79-908e-ee22b7ba678f  Fauci: Vaxxed & Tracked or House Arrest Forever.  Please remember Coronaviruses are ever present in society and are a part of the seasonal flu recorded each and every year. They aren’t going away no matter what we do. Also, Fauci has a long history of pushing vaccines. This article shows how he thought hydroxycloroquine was fine for MERS in 2013 but not for COVID-19 on 2020: https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/04/wow-dr-fauci-cheered-hydroxychloroquine-success-treating-mers-coronavirus-2013-today-skeptical-weird/

But perhaps this is what officials have had in mind the entire time. Prevent people from obtaining immunity, and make them scared to death of a virus so that they will eagerly accept a fast-tracked vaccine that even vaccine proponents are worried about:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/29/dr-fauci-pushes-for-covid-19-vaccine-despite-research-showing-vaccinated-may-get-sicker-and-even-die-lab-animals-got-sicker-too/

Evidence is pointing more and more to a predesigned Plannedemic.
Hopefully it is becoming clearer that some people feel they have the “right” facts that need to be centrally reported and that their facts are above scrutiny despite the fact most of these people are not even educated in medicine or the human body and that in many instances they are just plain wrong as well as have severe conflicts of interest.

Lastly, citizen reporters from numerous states have uncovered that the media is lying about prevalence and seriousness of COVID-19

 Approx. 13 Min

NYC, Hawaii, CA, Kentucky Citizen Reporters Show What Mainstream Media Won’t

Videos now backed up on Brighteon.com. https://www.brighteon.com/channel/dan…

For more:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/31/doctors-challenging-coronavirus-crisis/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/16/does-the-coronavirus-exist/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/17/stunning-insights-into-the-corona-panic-by-dr-wolfgang-wodarg/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/30/how-deadly-is-the-coronavirus-its-still-far-from-clear-everything-is-set-up-to-show-high-numbers/

https://www.statnews.com/2020/03/17/a-fiasco-in-the-making-as-the-coronavirus-pandemic-takes-hold-we-are-making-decisions-without-reliable-data/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/27/cdcs-deadly-testing-fiasco-centralization-of-public-health-authority-a-threat-to-national-security/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/19/revealed-basic-math-error-likely-cause-of-global-coronavirus-panic/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/22/dr-ron-pauls-warning-of-coronavirus-hoax/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/04/04/experts-and-models-can-they-show-us-their-math/

 

Category:

Activism, vaccines, Viruses

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Going Outdoors? Be Aware That Ticks Are Starting to Stir

https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/opinion/local-perspectives/donna-lugar-going-outdoors-be-aware-that-ticks-are-starting-to-stir-430692/#.XoH6VeE1ChI.linkedin

DONNA LUGAR: Going outdoors? Be aware that ticks are starting to stir

Published: Mar 27 at 4:36 p.m.
Black-legged ticks are shown at different stages of feeding. Black-legged ticks, also known as deer ticks, carry the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. FILE PHOTO
Black-legged ticks are shown at different stages of feeding. Black-legged ticks, also known as deer ticks, carry the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. FILE PHOTO – Contributed

DONNA LUGAR

With all the talk about COVID-19, don’t forget your tick protection if de-stressing outside

Although ticks can be active at any time of the year when temperatures permit, they are now becoming more active. When spending any time outdoors, please remember to undertake preventative measures and ensure that you are doing your daily tick checks. Although I realize many are presently spending more time indoors, there are people taking this time to work in their yards and spending more time outdoors with their family and pets. As well, with the closure of groomed trails, beaches, etc., many may head to areas less travelled. Prevention is key!

I frequently receive calls and emails from Nova Scotians throughout the province wondering if they may have Lyme disease. One of the first things I suggest is for them to review a symptom list, either from the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation website or from any government website that breaks down the three stages of Lyme. I then suggest that they take the Horowitz Lyme-MSIDS Questionnaire disease, which will give them an idea as to whether they may have Lyme and/or a tick-borne disease. As well, in December of 2019, the following research article was posted in Frontiers in Medicine: The General Symptom Questionnaire-30 (GSQ-30): A Brief Measure of Multi-System Symptom Burden in Lyme Disease. This is a very helpful document for both you and your doctor.

Depending on their score on the Horowitz Questionnaire, I then suggest that they go back to their doctor, if they are lucky enough to have one, and request the ELISA blood test for Lyme. However, I also advise that this test has sensitivity and specificity limitations and a negative test does not necessarily mean they do not have Lyme disease.

Of importance to note, there are treatment guidelines for Lyme disease in this province. Unfortunately, it appears that not all doctors are aware of this. Although these guidelines follow the IDSA Guidelines, which are presently being updated, they do not include what I believe to be a very important caveat included in the actual IDSA guidelines:

“It is important to realize that guidelines cannot always account for individual variation among patients. They are not intended to supplant physician judgment with respect to particular patients or special clinical situations. The Infectious Diseases Society of America considers adherence to these guidelines to be voluntary, with the ultimate determination regarding their application to be made by the physician in the light of each patient’s individual circumstances.”

It is my opinion that this very important caveat should be included within our guidelines and that your doctor knows that it exists.

Another document that exists that many are not aware of is the N.S. Tick Borne Diseases Response Plan. This plan has a lot of important information. It also notes other potential illnesses that can be transmitted. Just be aware that researchers at Dalhousie have found even more and that they have found things in both the black-legged (deer) and dog (wood) ticks.

If you wish to learn more about Lyme and tick-borne diseases there are now YouTube videos available for most of the presentations made at the Bridgewater Lyme Conference on Nov. 16 and 17, 2019. This YouTube channel also has prevention videos and so much more.

As the Nova Scotia representative of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation (CanLyme), you can always reach out to me. My contact info is on the CanLyme website.

On a final note, there is presently a petition making the rounds in Nova Scotia that will hopefully be presented to the Nova Scotia legislature in the fall of this year. There are five asks. If you would be interested in having a copy to help obtain signatures, or are interested in signing, please let me know via donna.lugar@ns.sympatico.ca. The petition is a paper one, as that is what Nova Scotiá’s legislature requires. With the present circumstances, it will take some effort to get a sufficient number of signatures to make the petition worthwhile. Any help you can give would be appreciated.

Remember, ticks can be active all year, depending upon temperatures. Bites are usually painless and many are missed; not everyone gets an erythema migrans rash, of which the bull’s eye is just one manifestation.

Prevention is key, but even the most vigilant can miss a tick. Make yourself knowledgeable.

Donna Lugar is the N.S. representative, CanLyme. She lives in Bedford.

__________________

**Comment**

This article does not mention that there are other treatment guidelines in use by ILADS:  https://www.ilads.org/patient-care/ilads-treatment-guidelines/

If doctors follow the IDSA guidelines, treatment will be short term and typically a mono therapy, rather than an overlapping treatment using numerous antimicrobials for Lyme as well as coinfections for a much longer period of time should symptoms warrant it.

Personally, I have found the Horowitz questionnaire to be far more accurate than current 2-tiered CDC testing which depending upon who’s counting, misses over half of all cases: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/06/07/if-youre-testing-for-lyme-disease-heres-what-you-should-know/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/12/16/laboratory-testing-for-lyme-disease/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/09/12/lyme-testing-problems-solutions/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/01/16/2-tier-lyme-testing-missed-85-7-of-patients-milford-hospital/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/10/13/direct-test-for-ld-carl-tuttle-chews-up-cdc-spits-them-out/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2018/10/12/direct-diagnostic-tests-for-lyme-the-closest-thing-to-an-apology-you-are-ever-going-to-get/

KEY QUOTE: “THESE SEROLOGIC TESTS CANNOT DISTINGUISH ACTIVE INFECTION, PAST INFECTION, OR REINFECTION.”

More on prevention:  https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/04/12/tick-prevention-2019/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2019/07/18/frequent-prescribed-fires-can-reduce-risk-of-tick-borne-diseases/

https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2020/03/19/are-current-tick-prevention-methods-for-dogs-working/

 

 

 

 

Category:

Lyme, Prevention, Testing, Treatment

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