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You May Have It And Not Know It
Lyme Disease Is No Walk In The Park
Find Out What You Need To Know
Lyme disease is a bacterial spirochete (organism) transmitted by ticks. The name of the particular bacteria is Borrelia Burgdorferi.
Many people do not know how widespread the Lyme
disease epidemic is and the high odds that someone
they know may be affected. Please take a few moments to read the following facts that demonstrate the seriousness of the disease and how it can be prevented.
Misdiagnosis
Estimates state that only one out of every ten cases
of Lyme disease is reported and that many people
are misdiagnosed. Therefore, the 19,000 cases reported
by the National Center for Infectious Disease (CDC)
each year are more likely to be estimated at over
200,000 cases.
Lyme disease may be difficult to diagnose because
many of its symptoms mimic those of other disorders.
In addition, the only distinctive hallmark unique
to Lyme disease, the "bulls eye" rash,
is absent in almost half of the people who become
infected. The inadequacies of today's laboratory
tests make proper diagnosis difficult, and it can
be extremely troublesome to treat the infection
in its later phases.
Lyme disease can attack virtually any system in
the body. Some of the first symptoms may include
a flu-like condition, with fever, chills, headache,
stiff neck, achiness, and fatigue. Other symptoms
can include pain in various joints and muscles,
neurological problems, heart involvement, problems
with vision or hearing, migraines, low-grade fever
or other symptoms. Lyme disease is often mistaken
for other illnesses since the symptoms often mirror
other medical problems, such as multiple sclerosis,
arthritis, chronic fatigue cyndrome, lupus or Alzheimer's
disease. In the some cases, Lyme disease patients can become
paralyzed and/or comatose. Lyme disease symptoms
may come and go and be replaced by new symptoms.
Symptoms may be subtle or pronounced.
Selection of Proper Physicians
When a patient with possible Lyme-disease symptoms
does not develop the distinctive rash, a physician
must rely on a detailed medical history and a careful
physical examination for essential clues to diagnosis,
with laboratory tests playing a supportive role.
The inadequacies of the current diagnostic tests
and many physicians' lack of experience with the
disease and in interpreting result often prevent a correct Lyme-disease diagnosis.
In the first few weeks following infection, antibody
tests are not reliable because a patient's immune
system has not produced enough antibodies to be
detected. Antibiotics given to a patient early during
infection may also prevent antibodies from reaching
detectable levels, even though the Lyme-disease
bacterium is the cause of the patient's symptoms.
Physicians that have had proper training in regards
to the diagnosis of Lyme disease are called "Lyme
literate." If you are interested in finding
a Lyme literate doctor in your area, please feel
free to e-mail us at info@turnthecorner.org.
Please click here to read a true
story of the frustration of being misdiagnosed and
not finding a Lyme-literate doctor.
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