I should have said that anyone living in UK may like to pop along and look at Eurolyme chat line if they think they could infact have lyme and ask some questions there then do report back here and let others have the benefit of your experience.
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/Eurolyme/
Another interesting statement
I am a board certified rheumatologist and internist with a special interest in the rheumatic
presentations of infectious diseases, an interest sparked during research conducted for an M.S. in
biochemistry at Loma Linda University in 1982. Since graduating from the Georgetown University
Hospital Fellowship in Rheumatology in 1993, I have devoted my career in finding the underlying
causes of some of the more common rheumatic diseases, including fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue
syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, reactive arthritis, autoimmune diseases and vasculitis. Over time,
it has became progressively clear to me that in treating patients with a variety of rheumatic
presentations, in the majority of rheumatic diseases and probably the majority of all degenerative
diseases (such as diabetes, high blood pressure, dementia, strokes, heart attacks, kidney failure,
cancer, etc.), which are significantly on the rise today, stem from a combination of genetic
predisposition and environmental triggers, collectively known as the individual’s phenotype. This
leads to the development of the theory of complex causality in which the genotype may interact with
chronic infective triggers causing in some a phenotypic presentation of rheumatic diseases. Of the
various types of infection that I evaluate and treat in my rheumatology practice, Lyme disease is the
most progressively disabling to individuals. The disseminated form of Lyme disease is a systemic,
multi-organ persistent infection I refer to as Lyme Complex, one very much underestimated by
research centers.
In my rheumatology practice alone, I have seen and diagnosed Lyme infection in patients presenting
with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), chronic immunodeficiency fatigue syndrome,
polymyositis, polymyalgia rheumatic, temporal arteritis (TA)U, rheumatoid arthritis, Reiter’s
syndrome, reactive arthritis or spondyloarthropathy, and Systemic Lupus Erythematosis (SLE).
Other diseases include Wegener’s vasculitis, chronic asthma, chronic sinusitis, chronic headache and
migraine syndromes, chronic neck pain, lumbago, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Inflammatory
Bowel Disease (IBD, both Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis), Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, Lou
Gehrig’s Disease (ALS), dementia, Alzheimer’s dementia, and seizures. Many physicians in the field
that treat patients with disseminated Lyme disease share these observations. This list is not
exhaustive, either. IDSA does not recognized that tick-borne diseases can cause clotting, stokes, or
heart attacks. It is therefore unacceptable to allow them to restrict diagnostic criteria and treatment
Guidelines before they fully define the actual disease. Doing so would exclude too many factors
involved in the disease, and would condemn many patients to disability and a life of pain and
suffering by limiting diagnosis and treatment options.
http://www.ilads.org/lyme_disease/written_testimony/11%20Zackrison-Arthritis%20Recommendations.pdf?action=ViewDetails&ItemID=22#search="ME CFS"
The above was presented to the IDSA review hearing by Leila H. Zackrison
Suzanne Vernon PhD gave a talk on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) which she has studied extensively. It was stated that there are many parallels between CFS and Lyme including the lack of a bio-marker. Vernon noted that CFS is a diverse group of conditions. She has developed a model of the condition in which disturbance of the HPA axis is central.
Comment: CFS affects around 4 million Americans and the severity of the illness is such that many are incapable of work. How many CFS patients have symptoms attributable to tick borne illness is not known. Even if the proportion is small the Public Health implications would be significant.
http://www.ilads.org/about_ILADS/2008_conference.html
Garth Nicolson PhD has spent many years working in the field of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) like diseases and has highlighted the importance of Mycoplasma in the past. Mycoplasma can be found in ticks and is another co-infection for Lyme. Prof. Nicolson presented data relating to NTFactor, a commercially available nutritional supplement which may help some patients with persistent fatigue.
http://www.ilads.org/news/ilads_archives/4.html
Q&A With Dr. Shor
by Scott Forsgren
What percentage of the previously diagnosed CFS patients that you see may actually be dealing with chronic Lyme disease?
Confidently, 50% or more of my CFS patients may have Lyme disease as the underlying cause of their illness.
http://www.publichealthalert.org/Articles/scottforsgren/Dr Sam Shor.htm
case study
Patients with symptoms that are consistent with chronic fatigue syndrome should be seriously evaluated for the potential of chronic Lyme infection. Common features in both conditions include profound fatigue, sleep, and cognitive impairment, along with fibromyalgia and dysautonomias, In addition, if chronic Lyme is determined to be present, then evaluation for the potential of co-infections with Ehrlichia sennetsu, Bartonella henselae or Babesia microti should be undertaken. In doing so, we are more likely to effectively reverse the chronic, often debilitating processes with which our patients are so often presenting.
http://www.cfids-cab.org/rc/Shor.pdf
Hope you find that interesting but I am sure there is much more.