Tick bite leads to amputation of woman's limbs

[Ecoclimber]

Tick bite leads to amputation of woman's limbs
By Ben Brumfield, CNN

(CNN) A tick bite led to amputations on all four of an Oklahoma woman's limbs. Doctors did it to save Jo Rogers' life from the aggressive bacteria the arachnid passed on. It's the worst case of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever - bacteria Rickettsia rickettsii - they'd seen, Roger's cousin Lisa Morgan told CNN affiliate KOCO.

Rogers fought for her life on a ventilator in a medically induced coma. Her family is now focusing her attention on getting through this...MORE:

More information and location of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

Reminder: C6-based ELISA test, which is widely used in Europe and can detect as many as 18 species of the Borrelia bacterium. But the test is not used in the U.S., according to the CDC.

various species of infected ticks secies that effect the Midwest, Southern, Southeast and Northeast are these varities:
Borrelia garinii - mainly Europe
B. americana
B. andersonii.
B. bissettii
Babesiosis
Babesia duncani
Borrelia burgdorferi the only species that the CDC test for.

 

[adreno]

Damn.

 

[Valentijn]

Okie ticks are bad-ass

 

[duncan]

Sorry, not trying to be a nudge, but the C6 is used in the United States, and is in fact FDA-approved.

I normally associate the C6 with Borrelia, though.

I am not sure it can be used for rickettsii, which is what this woman had a form of, i.e. RMSF.

 

[whodathunkit]

Damn.

Jeez. Double what he said.

Speaking of...adreno, how are you doing with your tick bite course of abx?

 

[Ecoclimber]

Sorry, not trying to be a nudge, but the C6 is used in the United States, and is in fact FDA-approved.

I normally associate the C6 with Borrelia, though.

I am not sure it can be used for rickettsii, which is what this woman had a form of, i.e. RMSF.

I didn't know as the last I heard, the CDC recommends testing for Borrelia burgdorferi by serology or western blot.
There has been controversy concerning the accuracy from testing labs. I know IGeneX is a CLIA lab which tests for more strains, so there accuracy should be better for false positives.

Another note: deer ticks can be as small as a poppyseed. Also, ticks are not just associated with one species of animals but can be found on squrriels, wild turkeys, raccoons as well.

There is controversy on chronic Lyme disease. A report from the New England Journal of Medicine has stated that people bitten by ticks build up an immunity to a particular strain from 7-9 years. There are 16 different strains of the Lyme disease bacterium and researchers found that the condition was not chonic in the years following but that patients were reinfected with different strains through further tick bites.

Researchers are finding infectious ticks in areas that the CDC and doctors believed where impossible for patients to receive infectious tick bites or Lyme disease. These include Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Texas and Virginia, California.

A new label is being associated with Lyme disease, "The New Great Imitator," as it is often mistaken for illnesses such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, lupus, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS), Parkinson's, ADHD and even Alzheimer's. Symptoms include fatigue, headaches, muscle and joint pain and cognitive dysfunction so you can see how it can mimic other diseases especially ME/CFS.

Also want to note there is a deadly strain of ticks called the 'Lone Star Tick' located primarily in Texas, Tennesse, Missouri and Oklahoma. The infection from this tick bite is called the Hartland Virus. The Heartland virus is part of the Bunyaviridae family

Also noted is Bartonella which can be transmitted by ticks, cat scratches, fleas, sand fleas, mosquitos even dust mites so you can have co-infections. More can be read on my posting Bartonella: the epidemic you’ve never heard of

There is a CLIA research lab that tests for bartonella, Galaxy Diagnostics founded by researchers at NC State University College of Veterinary Medicine. They are Bartonella enrichmentPCR, ePCR. I am sure there are other CLIA labs that tests for these infections as well. They seem to be ahead of the curve.

Also, plague has been found among infected dead squirrels in Yosemite National Park in California

Makes one wary of venturing outdoors this summer unless dressed in a full hasmat suit. But if you follow these instructions, instructions you should be okay