Why Is My Doctor Clueless About My Lyme Disease?

You may have been visiting your doctor for years complaining about a myriad of symptoms. People may think that you are a hypochondriac. Yet you knew something was wrong. And one day finally you are told a diagnosis that you have a disease called Lyme disease. How is it that the medical community was clueless? After all this is the 21’st century with advanced medicine and all the tests in the world. Why you wonder was your Lyme disease caught before.

The answers are myriad. First Lyme disease is frequently misdiagnosed. Physicians overlook cases of Lyme disease simply because they do not know the complex nature of the origin and development of Lyme Disease. Lyme Disease can cause over 100 different symptoms and the one commonly known symptom of Lyme Disease – that is joint pain is only one of the many presentations of Lyme Disease.

Secondly the tests for Lyme Disease are frequently useless and frequently misleading. The bacteria which causes Lyme disease can only infrequently be grown in bacterial plates. There is no one test to medical test diagnose Lyme Disease. Hence your doctor has to be on the ball to catch your symptoms. And even then he may not put together your odd symptoms as Lyme Disease if you unlucky enough to have Lyme Disease symptoms that “are not in the book”.

Not only is that Lyme Disease not caused by the one known bacteria. It is now estimated that 300 different strains of bacterial worldwide cause Lyme Disease. Further it is not only the deer tick that spreads Lyme Disease. Other ticks such as Lone Star Ticks, western black legged and wood ticks can spread Lyme Disease as well. And if that is not enough global warming is spreading the geographic range of some of these insects to previously unknown areas.

You are not alone in being left out in the cold. It turns out that Lyme Disease is much more common than previously estimated – up to 10 to 15 times higher than the previous underrated estimates. As you well have figures out by now doctors often miss most cases if Lyme Disease. The reasons are not hard to figure out. Further because of the apparent low rates of this disease it is not considered of any major public health concern so that there is no mandatory reporting procedure as one might find with venereal diseases. You have been caught in a terrible vicious cycle. Low diagnosis rates since doctors do not know what to look for and tests are not accurate in any manner. Then because the true prevalence of the incidence of Lyme Disease is vastly underreported Lyme disease is seen as a minor disease that is well taken care of. Hence there is little need for education on how to catch the symptoms of Lyme Disease .The circle goes on and on.

Amazingly even if you are one of the lucky few and have your Lyme Disease correctly diagnosed you may not be home free. You may be under treated with antibiotic therapy. The stated course of action is a 6 week schedule of antibiotic therapy. Yet it often takes months, years and perhaps for ever of antibiotic therapy to manage this lingering disease with its hardy bacterial threat.

It has been said that just because you are paranoid does not mean that people are not out to get you. You were not imagining that your Lyme Disease took a very long time to diagnose. And the reasons are real not imagined.

Margaret Mathews Morgellons Research Foundation Com www.fortunawebs.com www.morgellonsresearchfoundation.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Margaret_Mathews

Lyme Disease - A Silent Threat To Your Health

It is estimated that as many as 220,000 Americans' developed Lyme disease in 2005 alone. Did you ever think something as small as the head of a pin could cause so much trouble? Unfortunately, being bitten by a tiny tick infected with Lyme disease could mean serious danger.

There are various types of ticks but the infected deer tick (named so because they frequently attach themselves to deer and mice) is the main spreader of Lyme disease.

There tends to be more cases of Lyme disease during warmer months of the year. This may be due to the fact that more people are outside giving the ticks more opportunity to come in contact with humans. Because the deer tick is so small most people don’t even feel them moving on their body and may not even notice that they are attacked.

The correct way to remove an attacked tick is to grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible with a pair of narrow-tipped tweezers. Pull firmly and with steady pressure. Try not touch the tick with your bare hands but, if you must, wash your hands immediately. Then, wash the tick-bitten area quickly and apply an antibiotic cream or antiseptic. Observe the wound often for signs of possible Lyme disease infection.

Some signs of Lyme disease include: a spreading, red rash that extends from the bite spot up to 7 inches out. There may also be flu like symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, pains and weakness.

If Lyme disease is left untreated, it can cause even more severe symptoms like: numbness, severe joint stiffness (like arthritis), high fever, loss of memory, and even hearing and vision problems.

If you believe that you may have been infected, contact your physician. When Lyme disease is caught early enough antibiotics are usually prescribed to fight the infection, but waiting to seek medical treatment can lead to prolonged and less effective treatments.

When it comes to going outside, taking precautions will save you discomfort later on. It's best to put bug repellent on before going outside. Products containing DEET have been shown to be the most effective repellents. If using repellent, apply it sparingly; it will last between 4 to 8 hours. Read the label carefully before applying if you're pregnant or have small children. Also, wearing light clothing (to easily spot ticks), wearing long pants and shirt sleeves, tucking pants into boots or socks, tucking shirts in and keeping a hat on can help keep ticks off exposed skin. Ticks are drawn to dark areas such as waistbands and hair.

It's also a good idea to treat those pets that go outside. They can carry ticks into your house or rub on you and transfer them. There are several good flea and tick medicines available through your veterinarian, online or in pet stores. Get the good stuff! Paying a little more will insure your pet's and your happiness and the good stuff really does work great.

Lyme Disease prevention and awareness can help you and your family enjoy the time you spend outdoors even more without fear.

Tina Seay is the author and webmaster of www.ForTheCatLover.com a website for cats and the people who love them. Her other websites include www.LearnSomethingToday.com a website that promotes quality of life and YourWeddingStory.net a site that helps the whole bridal party get ready for a dream wedding. . Her goal is to help others achieve a happy healthy lifestyle.

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Tick-Borne Disease

Ticks are parasites that can transmit debilitating diseases to humans and animals. Disease transmission occurs through tick bites. In the United States, ticks cause a number of diseases including Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Colorado tick fever, babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, and tick paralysis.

Lyme disease is transmitted by white-footed mice to ticks, when the ticks feed on them. Ticks, in turn, pass on the disease to humans. This disease is primarily caused by deer ticks. The infection is transmitted only if the tick has been attached to the host for thirty-six to forty-eight hours. Early symptoms include an expanding “bull’s eye” rash, fever, fatigue, headache, stiff neck, facial palsy, joint pains, and numbness. Late-stage symptoms include arthritis, numbness, temporary memory loss, confusion, and lack of concentration.

Ehrlichiosis is primarily transmitted by the Lone Star tick. Its symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint pains, and vomiting. A rash may or may not appear. Babesiosis is generally transmitted by the deer tick. Its symptoms include fatigue, discomfort, fever, headache, and muscle pain. This disease can prove fatal if it is not treated immediately.

Rocky Mountain spotted fever is caused by several species of ticks, and its symptoms include rash, high fever, and flu-like symptoms. If this disease is ignored or not treated properly, it can cause death. Colorado tick fever is primarily caused by the Rocky Mountain wood tick. It is also characterized by a rash, high fever, and flu-like symptoms. In severe cases, bleeding or heart problems may occur.

Tick paralysis is caused by several species of ticks. Its early signs are fatigue and numbness. It can lead to convulsions and facial paralysis, and if untreated it can even cause death. Unlike treatment for other tick borne diseases, treatment for tick paralysis is very simple, involving only the complete removal of the tick.

Individuals visiting or inhabiting tick-prone areas can prevent tick bites by taking some simple precautions. These precautions include regularly mowing lawn grass, clearing leaves and bush, treating pets and their environments with tick-killing pesticide, wearing light-colored clothes and enclosed shoes, and treating clothes with repellent before wearing them.

However, there is no reason to panic if a tick is found attached to the skin of a host. It must be carefully removed with tweezers or a commercial tick removal tool and preserved in a sealed container or bag. It is also necessary to watch out for symptoms of tick-borne disease for about a month and seek medical help immediately if any symptoms appear. All tick-borne diseases can be cured easily if treated in their early stages.

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Animals, Humans, and Lyme Disease

You may think that the transmission of Lyme disease is very simple – you get it from a deer tick bite. That information is essentially true, and if you just want to avoid Lyme disease, that’s all you really need to know. What goes on in the woods, however, is interesting, and it helps to explain why Lyme disease is spreading and becoming more common.

Lyme transmission starts with the White-footed mouse, a common forest creature that carries Borrelia burgdorferi, the organism responsible for Lyme disease. In the most common scenario, newly hatched larval Ixodes sp. ticks feed on the mice and become infected with the organism. The ticks then develop through a nymphal stage to an adult tick, feeding on other hosts as they get older.

At both the nymph and adult stage, ticks are found clinging to the tall grasses in open forests and forest edges, the same type of environment favored by White-tailed Deer. When a deer wanders by, the ticks climb on and take another blood meal. If it’s a human that wanders by, or a dog, a raccoon, or even a bird, the tick is not fussy – deer ticks will readily feed on all of these hosts as well as other warm blooded animals.

Borrelia burgdorferi gets passed on to the new host as the tick feeds. Many animals aren’t affected by the organism and their immune systems simply kill it. White-tailed deer and some bird species are among the lucky animals that don’t get Lyme disease. Humans, however, can suffer a long and debilitating illness.

Deer are responsible for supporting large numbers of ticks; one deer can have hundreds of ticks feeding on it at any one time. Anyone who has driven the roads of North Eastern North America at dusk and dawn in the summer months knows that the White-tailed deer population is booming like never before. Deer graze by the roadsides and wander into cities and gardens. Lots of deer means lots of ticks, and deer in human communities means Lyme transmission to humans.

Deer don’t spread Lyme disease over large geographical distances however – birds do that. When a deer tick bites a bird, two things can happen: if the bird is already infected, having been bitten by an infected tick somewhere else, the new tick becomes infected and can spread the organism to other hosts. If the tick is already infected and the bird is not, the organism gets passed the other way, and because ticks take days to finish their meal, both tick and bird can be many miles away from their starting point before the tick drops off. Both can now continue to Lyme transmission. Migrating birds are thought to have spread B. burgdorferi to many new locales.

A final factor to consider is global warming. Warmer climates have opened up new territory for deer ticks, and they are now surviving and reproducing in areas where they were previously unable to withstand cold winter temperatures. Thus, ticks carried in on migrating birds are more and more likely to survive the trip.

Rosemary Drisdelle is a freelance writer focusing on technical and science writing and creative non-fiction. She writes about birds for Suite101.com. She also writes a blog about parasites and people.

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Diagnosis and Treatment of Fibromyalgia

Fibromyalgia is a chronic, widespread, debilitating disease that often manifests as diffuse pain, constant muscle aches and overwhelming fatigue. Although it affects about 2-6% of the general population (about five million people), fibromyalgia is not a contagious disease. Women are about 9 times more likely to be diagnosed than men, and it is most prevalent in prevalent in people between 20-50 years of age.

Fibromyalgia usually displays a variety of symptoms including generalized aches and pains, increased sensitivity of the skin, chronic fatigue, weakness or dizziness, muscle stiffness or joint pain and migraine headaches. Symptoms of fibromyalgia vary greatly between individuals but almost all suffer from an associated sleep disorder. Depression, anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome, numbness and tingling of the extremities and heightened sensitivity to stimuli may also be present.

Currently, there is no known specific cause of fibromyalgia. Popular opinion suggests a disorder in pain perception and processing in the pathways to the brain. Research has shown that fibromyalgia patients have elevated levels of substance P (involved with enhanced pain perception) and a lower than normal production of natural stress hormones. Another theory revolves around a sleep disturbance as the cause, because many fibromyalgia patients cannot attain deep sleep. Still other theories have implicated reduced immune system function, environmental toxins, abnormal hormonal fluctuations, viral causes, genetic links and dysfunctional neurotransmitters. Although exciting new research is constantly being done, the cause of fibromyalgia remains elusive and has the medical world stumped.

Diagnosis of fibromyalgia is based on a specific set of criteria, including a physical examination or observation, and the symptoms described by the patient. Ruling out other possible diseases is key. Currently, there are no conclusive laboratory tests to identify fibromyalgia but for diagnostic purposes, there has to be a history of diffuse pain lasting longer than three months. Another diagnostic requirement is the presence of at least 11 "tender points" out of a possible 18 and these are typically located at elbow and knee joints, the neck, shoulders, lower back and hips...

Individual cases of fibromyalgia have a wide variability, but many patients also suffer from other disorders as well. These comorbid syndromes commonly include chronic clinical depression, lyme disease, chronic fatigue sydrome, premenstrual syndrome, restless legs syndrome, spinal disorders, or hypothyroidism. There are also many factors that can aggravate fibromyalgia. Severe weather changes, nutritional deficiencies, over-exertion, increases in stress levels, allergies and cold weather have all been shown to contribute to flare-ups.

Treatment of fibromyalgia has historically been inadequate at best. There is no cure for the disease and therapies are usually aimed at alleviating the symptoms and improving quality of sleep. Medications commonly prescribed for fibromyalgia include conventional analgesics, low-dose antidepressants, muscle relaxants and sleep-inducing agents. Alternative therapies that have shown some promise include acupuncture, chiropractic care, physical therapy, meditation or relaxation techniques and a gentle aerobic exercise program. Other important considerations to prevent fibromyalgia from flaring up include a regular sleep routine, emotional and physical stress reduction, good social support networks and strategies to conserve energy and minimize triggering factors.

Fibromyalgia can be a very difficult disease to live with because of its chronic, disabling nature and the presence of widespread skepticism. There is often no objective evidence of physical illness and the disease is very poorly understood. Sufferers of fibromyalgia face accusations of laziness or feigning illness. Social activity and recreation is often be avoided and the patient's career is usually affected as well. Although fibromyalgia can affect every aspect of its victims' lives, it does not have to be as devastating as it once was. With advanced scientific research and promising new treatments waiting in the wings, anything's possible.

Disclaimer: The information presented here should not be interpreted as or substituted for medical advice. Please talk to a qualified professional for more information about fibromyalgia.

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The Symptoms And Understanding Of Lyme Disease

Although once thought to be a form of arthritis that attacks children, lyme disease is actually a condition in which a bacterial infection has gotten into your blood stream. Unlike other types of conditions that have similar symptoms, lyme disease is transmitted to you by a dear tick. It was first discovered in 1975 when a group of children that was unreasonably large seemed to be suffering from arthritis. That led doctors to do a bit of unearthing and found that it was actually a bacterial infection that had caused the outbreak.

The bad news is that lyme disease is no longer found in just that one town of Lyme, Connecticut. Today, it is found in nearly every state in the United States with a concentration in New York, Minnesota, New Jersey and in Wisconsin. The disease has spread world wide as well as spreading into other types of animals. Not only can you get it from deer, but also from skunks, foxes, mice, moles, squirrels and horses (to name a few.) These conditions are most commonly found in animals that are in wooded areas or in grassy fields.

What Are The Symptoms?

Anyone that is exposed to these conditions can actually be put in dangers way of getting lyme disease. It is essential, then, that you understand the symptoms that it brings out. The tell tale sign of lyme disease is that of a rash, but not just any rash. This rash usually starts out with a small red spot where the tick has bitten. It then grows and expands significantly over the next days or even weeks. Usually, it will form a circle or a triangular shape on your skin. Sometimes, there is a red ring that is surrounding an area that is clear at the very center of the bite mark. This is called an erythma migrans and it affects at least 70 percent of those that will end up with lyme disease.

Other symptoms are also evident. If you are not treated by a doctor for your condition, you can develop conditions in which you have flare ups of arthritis like conditions. Your joints can become swollen and painful. Sometimes this will last for days, other times for months at at ime. It doesn’t have to be the same joint affected each time either. About 15 percent of patients that have lyme disease end up with this symptom. Yet another symptom is that of an attack of the nervous system. Here, you can experience other illnesses like meningitis or even temporary paralysis of facila muscles. Limbs and the circulatory system can become weakened or lessened in their abilities.

What is common is the fact that individuals will experience some pain that seems to be that of arthritis. Although lyme disease has been mistaken in the past for arthritis, don’t make this mistake. The symptoms and conditions of this condition can worsen, severely and can leave you with a lot of pain and eventually the breakdown of joints.

Greg Marsh is an acclaimed writer on medical matters, and has written extensively on the subjects of Rheumatoid Arthritis, Rheumatology and Rheumatism.

You can read more of Greg’s articles about Rheumatoid Arthritis at http://www.whugu.com

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