Chances are you won't see this classic bull's eye rash or a tick, yet millions of people suffer with Lyme and are not diagnosed until late stage disease. Definitive diagnosis for Lyme disease has been elusive at best for years until now.
Lyme Disease is a modern epidemic; a scourge that spans all continents and even worse that it is hard to diagnose it and treat it. The CDC (Center for Disease Control) is making it harder for practitioners and patients to test for Lyme. The CDC thinks that the current testing is in accordance with diagnostic recommendations. I can tell you that it is not. They believe that the number of reported cases in the USA has remained stable since 2008 and the rate of infection has remained fairly consistent. This is also false as Lyme and other co-infections has increased over 80% on the East Coast alone this year.
Why prevent patients from getting a correct diagnosis and effective treatment? It's because they do not want to spend more money; in fact they want to reduce the 492 million cost of testing for Lyme alone. They are looking to use 2-enzyme-linked immunoassay tests (ELISA) in an effort to reduce national testing costs by 57 million per year. A recent study found that this two tiered testing detected less than 40% of early disease 87% of disseminated disease (you would be really ill) and only 12% of detected infection in endemic states. I'm all for saving money, but not at the expense of missing a critical diagnosis and subsequent treatment.
Current testing is not giving false positives; it's not that accurate. I wish it was good enough to give false positives. Lyme has three forms - cyst form, L- form and spirochete form. We need access to the most sensitive tests to pick up any or all of these forms plus co-infections and biofilms.
They want practitioners to "consider the likelihood of a patient being infected" even before testing them. How do you do that since it can be picked up anywhere and there are several vectors - mice, birds, rodents, deer, plants, etc. Ticks can fly. They can fly, land, bite and fly away leaving you clueless about transmission. Lyme is also sexually-transmitted.
The stupid questions go like this: Does the patient have signs and symptoms consistent with the disease? Lyme is a spirochete and like Syphilis it attacks every organ system and mimics every disease. Nicknamed the great pretender, one patient could present with a urinary tract bladder infection, another with a swollen knee, Bell's palsey and another with neurological balance issues. Lyme disease symptoms and definitive diagnosis are elusive because it infiltrates all tissues.
Has the patient been in an area where the disease occurs? It occurs everywhere from the Scottish highlands to South American Pampas and everywhere in-between. Does the patient have risk factors for exposure to ticks? Really? Everyone has risk factors for Lyme exposure. You can be inside or outside, it could be Spring, Summer, Fall or Winter. I had a pediatric patient who was bitten in the middle of January inside.
I definitely would not leave my healthcare concerns in the hands of the CDC. Their statement on Lyme has been clear for years. A blind Lyme eye. I recently attended a Functional Forum in NYC that hosted a panel of Lyme specialists. There is a new test available in New York State from NeuroScience that is 84% sensitive and costs $389.00 to the patient. I have used Igenex for the past 15 years and comprehensive testing costs closer to $700. The test is called the i Spot. I'm going to order i Spot tests this week. If you think you have Lyme or want to rule out Lyme then call my office and ask for this test. I have successfully treated Lyme disease and other tick-born infections without antibiotics. Each case is different and we pay close attention to the details in every case.
Fight Chronic Lyme Disease and Co-Infections with Ozone Therapy
