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Thank you Mike. That will be helpful when I talk to the doctor tomorrow. He doesn't seem to have any other symptom other then the bullseye rash. We started the treatment tonight.
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Does Iowa have any poisonous spiders? In Wisconsin they are very, very rare. I would not rule that out yet either. You can get some nasty looking bites that start out looking like a small infection.Comment
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Lyme disease is nothing to be taken lightly. Here in CT (started in Lyme, CT) we do taking it VERY seriously. A very close friend went into cardiac arrest due to undiagnosed LD.
The problem right now, is you can test neg and still have it. There are few cases that are identical, the bullseye rash doesn't appear in every case. And those that have had severe cases, have had it come back years later.
It manifests in the form of joint pain, breathing difficulties, heart problems, even depression.
For the longest time doctors were not taking patients seriously if they didn't show the 'classic' symptoms......now they find there is nothing classic about the discease.
Read this article it's very interesting.
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They are doing a two-part blood test. Took the first sample today. The doc didn't want to wait to start treatment though so he's on an antibiotic ....which is good. He says IF it is Lyme it is the first stage...as the bullseye rash was in a noticable area....thank goodness, and we found it and had him seen in two days.
BTW, while at the Lab today I was told they have tested A LOT for Lyme this year....more than this guy had ever seen. Wonder what the heck is going on.
I just learned a guy I work with was diagnosed with Lyme Disease a few years ago. He had no clue and it settled in his joints. He hurt his knee, at the time seemed to be a minor injury but within 3 days his knee was swollen the size of a football. Went to the doctor and they drained a bunch of fluid from it....he said was a strange color....did that three times plus an exploratory surgery before a consult mentioned testing him for Lyme Disease. He came back positive, they treated him and he never had problems with his knee again. Weird! And he's not a guy that spends a lot of time outdoors.Comment
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Even if you don't spend time outdoors, if you have pets.............Comment
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Pets that fuck deer, thats how lyme started in the late seventies.Comment
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Yea, I think I read that in the NEJM.
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From my experiences with Lyme disease (others I know, not me personally), it is not to be taken lightly, but also is not something to panic over. In early stages it is very effectively treatable with antibiotics. For most people, even more advanced stages can be treated effectively. However, for a not insignificant number of individuals who are not treated in early stages the effects can be long-term and quite debilitating.
Unfortunately, the available tests are not as reliable as tests for many other things. The deer tick that transmits the disease can be quite small and unnoticeable or mistaken for another small insect.
The best recommendation that I have seen is to always have the possibility of Lyme disease in the back of your mind if you have any flu-like symptoms that linger, prolonged lethargy, a bull's-eye rash, etc. and suggest it to your doctor if these symptoms persist. Since the treatment is relatively routine in early stages, if in doubt be treated. The treatment also can be effective for other conditions exhibiting the same symptoms, the only difference being that the other conditions may have been effectively treated with less aggressive medication. However, if started less aggressively the treatment may not effectively slow the progression of Lyme disease, so treating for Lyme is the safer approach. To me, that makes sense.Comment
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Got the results back today from the 1st blood tests...negative!
Now he has to be tested again the week of 9/11. If that test is also negative then they are pretty sure it was not lyme disease.
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