Lyme disease is rarely a solo infection. Many patients battle multiple pathogens at once, most commonly Bartonella and Babesia. So why are these co-infections often missed?
Wow! Great piece! I went through 8 months of diagnostic Twilight Zone 29 years ago… Chronic Fatigue, Fibromyalgia, maybe Lupus, maybe MS…. Maybe crazy and depressed 44 year old… a renown ID doctor in NJ tested me and I was positive for Lyme…6 weeks on IV antibiotics didnt knock it out… but followed up with 60 days of Cipro and Hydroxychloroquin “ Plaquinel” did… which is why I SCREAMED from the rafters when the CDC banned it as a COVID treatment… pharmaceuticals have never been repurposed when found to be effective for a condition for which it was not originally developed?? Hello Viagra?!?! I met Dr. Willie Brugdorfer at a conference at Yale… I speak Swiss so I had an “ in” with him…. He said something about deer ticks having over 50 different known bacteria in their gut… so why are our scientists so hesitant to research vector borne infections??? I don’t get it.
Because they bio-engineered these "lab created" superbugs. Chris Newby spells it out clearly in her book Bitten in which she interviewed Burgdorfer several times. Right up until his passing when he wanted to tell the WHOLE story, which still hasn't been revealed.
I was so happy to see this post. I've known this organization is the path to a better health care system in our country. Now, with this post, I'm convinced you all will lead the way to a healthier society. Since the early days of Covid, I was convinced that many of the people who were sick had overlapping symptoms with tick infections. And that "long covid" was, in many cases reactivated Lyme and co-infections. As a long time sufferer of Lyme, Bartonella and Babesia, I know first hand. With literally millions of people infected with tick borne diseases, this is a huge part of the problem IMHO. Thank you so much for shining an important light on this subject.
Co-infections are, indeed, the rule rather than exception from the earliest days of the Lyme Disease epidemic. Laboratory testing is subordinate to taking a good history and acting on a plausible clinical diagnosis.
Failure to treat leads to disability in many forms - Arthritis, Early Onset Alzheimer's, subluxation of vertebral discs from the pelvis to the foramen magnum, visual dyscrasia (optic chiasma injury with loss of three dimensional perception and sense of velocity), brain damage (caudate nuclei, thalami, basal ganglia), neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (the Vigus Nerve Nuclei Irritability)...... Etc.. The list goes on and on for manifestations of the Borrelia burgdorferi infection, including death.
"Throwing everything AND the kitchen sink" into selection of antibiotics for efficacy can be measured with the Janisch-Herxheimer Reaction. It is not always the allergy to penicillin that causes the rash and anaphylaxis, but, rather, caused by the horribly potent endotoxins released on destruction of the pathogen. The fever and shakes, especially with intravenous therapy, demonstrate immediately what will work. There is the caveat of providing an NSAID of personal preference along with an antihistamine to mitigate cardiopulmonary collapse and shock. Nothing frightens a poor nurse running a routine IV than pupils fixed and dilated, blood pressure and pulse undetectable.
So, after IV Rocephin, Doxycycline or other good spirochete bug-killer, if the patient sweats through a mattress to the box springs and wakes up badly dehydrated, look for another pathogen. If an oral or IV Antimalarial (Plaquenil for the meek / Lariam for the bold), a manual blood smear with the Giemsa stain is a promising idea. The Herxheimer induced by an Antimalarial is a clue with confirmation by the lab test makes for a good diagnosis of Babesia microti going forward.
The resolution of symptoms can take time. Diagnostics before and after treatment regimens have a place for gauging what can be the long, slow progress for recovery from Lyme Disease and co- infections. In particular, the pre-treatment SPECT scan of Technetium 99m (TcHMPAO) will identify by slow/low uptake, deficient or asymmetrical imaging. Confirmation of success can be found with imaging a year later with the right antibiotics that might resolve brain damage and observable disabilities.
(Not only from Borreliosis, Babesiosis and other Lyme co-infections).
Great piece. My only problem is I don’t think many doctors will do the testing required or it’s most likely not covered by insurance. I could be wrong here but I’m of the thinking many diseases go in detected because there are pillars in the way with doctors who don’t listen and insurance companies who won’t pay or reject the treatments outright. We know today’s patients are just customers and a repeat customer is good for business.
I had STARI and Babesia. Took several different doctors to figure it out. I had one doctor tell me I suffered from old age and that I should get used to being fatigued all the time. I was on antibiotics for 8 months.
Hello Teresa: Thanks for the suggestion; the upcoming final episode, Lyme Part 3, will be devoted to covering the various treatment options for Lyme and Lyme co-infections. Should be in the next month or two so keep an eye out. Until then, our website, IMAhealth.org features additional content on Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. We have covered the topic of HBOT and we will be revisiting the treatment in the final part of the Lyme trilogy. https://imahealth.org/courses/conference-2022-basic/lessons/2022-l13-b-hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy/
Lyme disease is easily got rid of by touching an electric fence which restrains horses or cattle with both hands at the same time. The fence voltage is around 12 volts DC and it feels a lot like a mild electric shock. The electricity flows around your body killing off the Lyme disease particles in your blood causing the Lyme disease itself - job done.
While you are at it, touch the live strand several times, just to be sure
Disulfiram (alias, Antabuse) is more reliable. It takes a few months of Tea-Totaling (no ethanol in any beverage or medication) but it is like waking from a fog. Earlier, Minocin with Metronidazole would accomplish remissions for a year or more, but re-treatment as needed seemed to be safe and effective without causing antibiotic resistance. Plaquenil started later often manifested as malarial fevers, indicative of a secondary pathogen. On blood smears the infestation of Babesia microti (tick borne malaria) was detected, if the timing was right with repeated samples at different days and times of day.
Borrelia burgdorferi changes form and migrates to "compartments" in its victims is ways isolated from the efficacy of antibiotics. Hence, relapses as the months go by. Even IV 2 grams of Rocephin has a 3-4 month respite. The same for IV doxycycline. Antabuse is good until the next set of tick bites, 5 years or more without relapse.
I only plug myself into a wall-socket or an electric fence power supply for the Einstein Coiffure.
Lyme disease broke out in the 1975. There was developed hybridization of cell lines for tissue culture for selective breeding of zoonotic pathogens. This was done by starting with the animal (bovine, porcine, avian, etc.) cells hosting the pathogen to inoculation of cultures of greater proportions of the human genome. This technology allowed the adaptation of the pathogen to become infectious to humans by iterations.
The formulation of media for mass tissue culture was made reliable (1976-1979) with the innovation and commercialization of the Karamian Water Distillation. It included the system for ready availability of pure water that remained pyrogen free in long-term processing and storage. Not roller-bottle production of hybridized cell lines, but gram/mass quantities of growth in the "Super Culture" apparatus that utilized flowing media. The water system was installed at USAMRIID, Ft. Detrick, Maryland and the panoply of contractors in biowarfare research, development and manufacture.
Earlier, in the post-WWII era, the Soviet Union was re-purposing Liberty Ships for commerce to the United States and other allied nations of agricultural goods, including meats and hides for leather and other uses. Long Shoremen on both coasts eventually refused to handle the cargo. Bovine Brucellosis disease somehow was made infections to humans. So, nothing new here to see; this type of caper has been going on for time immemorial.
Willie Burgdorfer was conducting tick migration studies from the 1950's and was tasked in support of military projects. (In-) Conveniently, the open-air research site is, indeed, Plum Island Research Facility is directly south of Lyme Connecticut. Even with the separation from the mainland across the Long Island Sound, birds fly and carry ticks.
By 1975, and later, the children exiting school buses used crutches in abundance due to an outbreak of "Juvenile Arthritus", later assigned the title of "Lyme Disease" as it spread through whole families, across Long Island from the east to the west, and most of the United States, the Mid-West by 1987.
Cuba became involved with the USA program to seed ticks to the Island for disruption of agricultural production by sickening the field workers. It is doubtful that affliction was initiated by even their bizarre government that remains in power to now.
Wow! Great piece! I went through 8 months of diagnostic Twilight Zone 29 years ago… Chronic Fatigue, Fibromyalgia, maybe Lupus, maybe MS…. Maybe crazy and depressed 44 year old… a renown ID doctor in NJ tested me and I was positive for Lyme…6 weeks on IV antibiotics didnt knock it out… but followed up with 60 days of Cipro and Hydroxychloroquin “ Plaquinel” did… which is why I SCREAMED from the rafters when the CDC banned it as a COVID treatment… pharmaceuticals have never been repurposed when found to be effective for a condition for which it was not originally developed?? Hello Viagra?!?! I met Dr. Willie Brugdorfer at a conference at Yale… I speak Swiss so I had an “ in” with him…. He said something about deer ticks having over 50 different known bacteria in their gut… so why are our scientists so hesitant to research vector borne infections??? I don’t get it.
Because they bio-engineered these "lab created" superbugs. Chris Newby spells it out clearly in her book Bitten in which she interviewed Burgdorfer several times. Right up until his passing when he wanted to tell the WHOLE story, which still hasn't been revealed.
Mike Benz recently covered the connection between Lyme and SC2.
He started to “spill the ticks” and academia discredited him as “ senile.”
No one is talking about this. Thank you.
https://imahealth.org/hyperthermia-treatment-for-lyme-disease/. A recent feature article at IMAHealth.org
Thank you to everyone sharing Lyme disease information and resources. Consider IMA Forums and share your Lyme knowledge and Lyme stories there as well. https://imahealth.org/forums/groups/public-forum/forum/discussion/lyme-disease-the-hidden-battle-with-co-infections/
I was so happy to see this post. I've known this organization is the path to a better health care system in our country. Now, with this post, I'm convinced you all will lead the way to a healthier society. Since the early days of Covid, I was convinced that many of the people who were sick had overlapping symptoms with tick infections. And that "long covid" was, in many cases reactivated Lyme and co-infections. As a long time sufferer of Lyme, Bartonella and Babesia, I know first hand. With literally millions of people infected with tick borne diseases, this is a huge part of the problem IMHO. Thank you so much for shining an important light on this subject.
Co-infections are, indeed, the rule rather than exception from the earliest days of the Lyme Disease epidemic. Laboratory testing is subordinate to taking a good history and acting on a plausible clinical diagnosis.
Failure to treat leads to disability in many forms - Arthritis, Early Onset Alzheimer's, subluxation of vertebral discs from the pelvis to the foramen magnum, visual dyscrasia (optic chiasma injury with loss of three dimensional perception and sense of velocity), brain damage (caudate nuclei, thalami, basal ganglia), neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (the Vigus Nerve Nuclei Irritability)...... Etc.. The list goes on and on for manifestations of the Borrelia burgdorferi infection, including death.
"Throwing everything AND the kitchen sink" into selection of antibiotics for efficacy can be measured with the Janisch-Herxheimer Reaction. It is not always the allergy to penicillin that causes the rash and anaphylaxis, but, rather, caused by the horribly potent endotoxins released on destruction of the pathogen. The fever and shakes, especially with intravenous therapy, demonstrate immediately what will work. There is the caveat of providing an NSAID of personal preference along with an antihistamine to mitigate cardiopulmonary collapse and shock. Nothing frightens a poor nurse running a routine IV than pupils fixed and dilated, blood pressure and pulse undetectable.
So, after IV Rocephin, Doxycycline or other good spirochete bug-killer, if the patient sweats through a mattress to the box springs and wakes up badly dehydrated, look for another pathogen. If an oral or IV Antimalarial (Plaquenil for the meek / Lariam for the bold), a manual blood smear with the Giemsa stain is a promising idea. The Herxheimer induced by an Antimalarial is a clue with confirmation by the lab test makes for a good diagnosis of Babesia microti going forward.
The resolution of symptoms can take time. Diagnostics before and after treatment regimens have a place for gauging what can be the long, slow progress for recovery from Lyme Disease and co- infections. In particular, the pre-treatment SPECT scan of Technetium 99m (TcHMPAO) will identify by slow/low uptake, deficient or asymmetrical imaging. Confirmation of success can be found with imaging a year later with the right antibiotics that might resolve brain damage and observable disabilities.
(Not only from Borreliosis, Babesiosis and other Lyme co-infections).
Great piece. My only problem is I don’t think many doctors will do the testing required or it’s most likely not covered by insurance. I could be wrong here but I’m of the thinking many diseases go in detected because there are pillars in the way with doctors who don’t listen and insurance companies who won’t pay or reject the treatments outright. We know today’s patients are just customers and a repeat customer is good for business.
Excellent information! Thank you very much.
I had STARI and Babesia. Took several different doctors to figure it out. I had one doctor tell me I suffered from old age and that I should get used to being fatigued all the time. I was on antibiotics for 8 months.
One thing not mentioned in the article is HBOT. Hyperbaric oxygen was crucial to my full recovery from chronic Lyme!
Hello Teresa: Thanks for the suggestion; the upcoming final episode, Lyme Part 3, will be devoted to covering the various treatment options for Lyme and Lyme co-infections. Should be in the next month or two so keep an eye out. Until then, our website, IMAhealth.org features additional content on Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. We have covered the topic of HBOT and we will be revisiting the treatment in the final part of the Lyme trilogy. https://imahealth.org/courses/conference-2022-basic/lessons/2022-l13-b-hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy/
Dr Eric Kindwall is trailblazer on that.
Correction to Paragraph #2, Line #4 (the VAGUS Nerve Nuclei)
MS Word spell check doesn't recognize the correct spelling of the Vagus Nerve - 10th Cranial -
I'm embarrassed, my apology to readers. Next time I'll do a 9th edit.
Lyme disease is easily got rid of by touching an electric fence which restrains horses or cattle with both hands at the same time. The fence voltage is around 12 volts DC and it feels a lot like a mild electric shock. The electricity flows around your body killing off the Lyme disease particles in your blood causing the Lyme disease itself - job done.
While you are at it, touch the live strand several times, just to be sure
Disulfiram (alias, Antabuse) is more reliable. It takes a few months of Tea-Totaling (no ethanol in any beverage or medication) but it is like waking from a fog. Earlier, Minocin with Metronidazole would accomplish remissions for a year or more, but re-treatment as needed seemed to be safe and effective without causing antibiotic resistance. Plaquenil started later often manifested as malarial fevers, indicative of a secondary pathogen. On blood smears the infestation of Babesia microti (tick borne malaria) was detected, if the timing was right with repeated samples at different days and times of day.
Borrelia burgdorferi changes form and migrates to "compartments" in its victims is ways isolated from the efficacy of antibiotics. Hence, relapses as the months go by. Even IV 2 grams of Rocephin has a 3-4 month respite. The same for IV doxycycline. Antabuse is good until the next set of tick bites, 5 years or more without relapse.
I only plug myself into a wall-socket or an electric fence power supply for the Einstein Coiffure.
All invented in the Blob Labs. Cuba anyone???
Lyme disease broke out in the 1975. There was developed hybridization of cell lines for tissue culture for selective breeding of zoonotic pathogens. This was done by starting with the animal (bovine, porcine, avian, etc.) cells hosting the pathogen to inoculation of cultures of greater proportions of the human genome. This technology allowed the adaptation of the pathogen to become infectious to humans by iterations.
The formulation of media for mass tissue culture was made reliable (1976-1979) with the innovation and commercialization of the Karamian Water Distillation. It included the system for ready availability of pure water that remained pyrogen free in long-term processing and storage. Not roller-bottle production of hybridized cell lines, but gram/mass quantities of growth in the "Super Culture" apparatus that utilized flowing media. The water system was installed at USAMRIID, Ft. Detrick, Maryland and the panoply of contractors in biowarfare research, development and manufacture.
Earlier, in the post-WWII era, the Soviet Union was re-purposing Liberty Ships for commerce to the United States and other allied nations of agricultural goods, including meats and hides for leather and other uses. Long Shoremen on both coasts eventually refused to handle the cargo. Bovine Brucellosis disease somehow was made infections to humans. So, nothing new here to see; this type of caper has been going on for time immemorial.
Willie Burgdorfer was conducting tick migration studies from the 1950's and was tasked in support of military projects. (In-) Conveniently, the open-air research site is, indeed, Plum Island Research Facility is directly south of Lyme Connecticut. Even with the separation from the mainland across the Long Island Sound, birds fly and carry ticks.
By 1975, and later, the children exiting school buses used crutches in abundance due to an outbreak of "Juvenile Arthritus", later assigned the title of "Lyme Disease" as it spread through whole families, across Long Island from the east to the west, and most of the United States, the Mid-West by 1987.
Cuba became involved with the USA program to seed ticks to the Island for disruption of agricultural production by sickening the field workers. It is doubtful that affliction was initiated by even their bizarre government that remains in power to now.