RosieThe most recent piece of this puzzle, published last month in the New England Journal of Medicine,was the determination that what seemed to be persistent disease and relapse actually was a new infection.
"Although B. burgdorferi may persist for years in untreated patients, the weight of evidence is strongly against persistent infection as the explanation for persistent symptoms in antibiotic-treated patients with Lyme disease," he concluded.
A small subgroup of patients today continue to have persistent symptoms even after extensive treatment, but Steere believes that these patients most likely are experiencing an autoimmune phenomenon, not a chronic disease.
"Rather than persistent infection, infection-induced autoimmunity, retained spirochetal antigens, or both may play a role in the outcome," he stated.
This hypothesis is particularly germane for the arthritic symptoms, he explained.
http://www.medpagetoday.com/InfectiousD ... ease/36629
New Information on Lyme Disease
Moderators: Rosie, Jean, CAMary, moremuscle, JFR, Dee, xet, Peggy, Matthew, Gabes-Apg, grannyh, Gloria, Mars, starfire, Polly, Joefnh
New Information on Lyme Disease
Since I strongly believe that I had Lyme disease as a teenager........ typical rash, arthritis in knees.... I read any articles I find on the topic. I was never tested, as this was 45 years ago in Oregon, and not on the radar for doctors. I often wonder if my off-and-on arthritis and inflammation in knees and hands over the years are a consequence. And I know that several members of this forum have an interest as well. So I thought that I'd post what I saw on MedPage Today, which contains a link to the entire article:
Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time………Thomas Edison
Hi Rosie,
Very interesting. 17 subjects would appear to constitute a rather limited study, for such a sweeping conclusion, though. Did you read the comments, by any chance? The second one caught my eye, especially this part of it:
Regarding an autoimmune connection, though, it appears to me that a Lyme infection contains all the necessary ingredients for the creation of an environment that could certainly encourage the development of an autoimmune-type reaction — namely chronic stress, and mast cell activation, on a long-term basis.
I can't help but wonder if any Lyme patient with refractive arthritis issues has tried to control the arthritis symptoms by means of a GF diet. That might seem at first glance to be totally incongruous, but I have a strong suspicion that there's a direct connection, if an autoimmune component to Lyme disease does indeed exist.
Thanks for posting this.
Tex
Very interesting. 17 subjects would appear to constitute a rather limited study, for such a sweeping conclusion, though. Did you read the comments, by any chance? The second one caught my eye, especially this part of it:
The last part of that quote, especially, reminds me of some of our own comments about another disease. LOL.I personally fit into the category of patients who had a “prolonged exposure to the organism prior to the initial diagnosis and antibiotic treatment of Lyme disease” as it took twelve years to obtain a diagnosis. Nadelman, Steere and Wormser should prove their theories that persistent infection does not exist by infecting themselves with the Borrelia spirochete (similar to Barry Marshall’s experiment) and forgo treatment for a year or so and then treat the infection following the recommended IDSA one size fits all protocol because after all, in their minds, this is little more than a nuisance disease.
Regarding an autoimmune connection, though, it appears to me that a Lyme infection contains all the necessary ingredients for the creation of an environment that could certainly encourage the development of an autoimmune-type reaction — namely chronic stress, and mast cell activation, on a long-term basis.
I can't help but wonder if any Lyme patient with refractive arthritis issues has tried to control the arthritis symptoms by means of a GF diet. That might seem at first glance to be totally incongruous, but I have a strong suspicion that there's a direct connection, if an autoimmune component to Lyme disease does indeed exist.
Thanks for posting this.
Tex
It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.