Thank you,
I got these results from A CDSA a test, do you think I might have Lyme disease, what exactly as Lyme disease and how do you know that you have it. Also what do you mean by coinfection. Also what is abx?
thanks sorry to so many questions Jerry
I didn't know that a CDSA test would show up bartonella - thought it was only diagnosed by blood test. Lyme is an infection with the sprirochete bacterium borrelia. It's thought to be spread mainly by tick bites, but some think insects like mosquitoes can spread it too. The NHS test in the UK is the Western blot, but many think this misses a lot of cases and people get tests from other countries. But there is much argument over testing!
Some so-called 'Lyme literate' doctors are prepared to treat after just a clinical diagnosis (ie no positive blood tests) as the tests are so unreliable.
(I worry that we'll see much of the same arguments over testing with XMRV!):Retro mad:
The symptoms of chronic Lyme are very similar to ME and some argue that a large proportion of people diagnosed with ME actually have Lyme. But again, this is hugely contentious!
A co-infection is just an infection that often goes along with another. So bartonella is often seen with borrelia, perhaps because the insect or whatever bit the person carries both diseases.
Sorry - abx = antibiotics.
There's a huge amount of literature and debate about borrelia, bartonella and their co-infections. Have a look at Eurolyme and Lymenet, also the Lyme message board on Pro-Health.
Where did you get your CDSA test done, can I ask?
Jenny
