OT::::CAMP A and CAMP B....The Lyme Disease Controversy

[Guest guest]

CAMP A and CAMP B

The Lyme Disease Controversy

 

People who are stricken with Lyme disease are not only faced with a serious

infectious

disease, they may easily become distressed over the political predicament

they are facing

when attempting to find treatment. Little did these people know that once

they were bitten by a tiny infected tick, they would be bitten a second time by

a group of practitioners who once swore an oath to, 'first, do no harm'.

 

 

Since day one, a controversy has been brewing in the world of Lyme, pitting

doctors

against doctors, labs against labs, and insurance companies against anyone

they may have to reimburse.

 

Lyme patients have literally been hung out to dry by this group of so-called

professionals, without proper testing, a definitive diagnosis, or a proper

treatment protocol.

 

A patient who falls prey to a doctor on the wrong side of the Lyme fence

eventually learns these so-called healers do not have the patients best

interest

at heart.

 

Instead, some doctors are being lead around by the nose and are following

whoever happens to be signing their paychecks at any given point in time.

 

A dwindling group of these callous medical professionals are causing growing

numbers

of patients to become chronically ill and disabled by ignoring obvious Lyme

symptoms, disputing test results from experienced labs, and prescribing drugs

to mask symptoms, as opposed to addressing Lyme as an active infectious di

sease.

 

These doctors have been quick to talk the talk to any unsuspecting passer-by

or colleague, but not walk the walk with their patients down the road to

recovery.

 

Concrete evidence continues to surface proving these dinosaurs' original

theories obsolete; however, they stick by their guns in an attempt to save

their

declining reputations and almighty pocket books.

 

As the talkers (Camp A) cut corners and devise new schemes to prevent going

down with the ship, the front-line physicians (Camp B) who are treating the

devastated Lyme patients are saddled with increasing numbers of extremely ill

people who shouldn't have ended up in that leaky boat.

 

For the sake of the almighty dollar, the floundering medical misfits in Camp

A have allowed the Lyme controversy to drag on for over 20 years.

 

While patients in their hands needlessly suffer and go untreated, Camp A

dismisses any research that contradicts their original asinine conclusions.

 

Camp A reports Lyme disease is, " over diagnosed and over treated " . They have

concluded that if someone is bitten by a deer tick they should " wait and

see " if the

organisms disseminate and cause symptoms before addressing the situation.

 

They ignore research that has proven the Lyme spirochetes can travel to the

spinal fluid within days and time is of the essence if treatment is to have a

chance.

 

Camp A requires Lyme patients to prove there was a deer tick bite in

conjunction with a typical " bulls-eye rash " , and be positive on two different

blood

tests.

 

Research has shown that less than 50

percent of patients with Lyme recall a tick bite and less than 50 percent

develop a rash.

 

The standard lab tests used by Camp A miss as many as 80 percent of those

who actually have Lyme and are notorious for inaccurate results.

 

Members of Camp A blatantly ignore the warnings by the CDC, FDA,

International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society, Lyme Disease Association,

and many

other prominent organizations that agree a negative test should never be used

to rule out Lyme.

 

Camp A insists that Lyme disease, a systemic infection that can attack

multiple organs or systems at random, fit in a nice neat box and conform to

antiquated lab standards devised over a decade ago.

 

Then, they claim, and only then, should Lyme disease be considered a

possible cause for investigation.

 

Camp A believes that patients who remain ill or relapse after short term

treatment must

not have had Lyme disease originally and were misdiagnosed.

 

These patients, many who not only have active or chronic Lyme but one or

more active co-infections, are often told they are faking or malingering and

are

ordered to go back to their normal routines and/or get more exercise.

 

Increasing numbers of these patients are prescribed psychiatric drugs and

are told to accept the fact that nothing is physically wrong with them.

 

To compound the problems, Lyme patients often must endure a multitude of

invasive tests which are intended to try and rule out an obvious case of Lyme

(the " anything but Lyme syndrome " ).

 

As time progresses and the infections become worse, patients are often

misdiagnosed with:

chronic fatigue syndrome, ALS, MS, arthritis, depression, Fibromyalgia,

lupus, or a combination of conditions instead of the true tick borne infections

that remain active in their body.

 

Years ago, Camp A first speculated that antibiotics would not work on

patients with

Lyme disease, therefore, many patients were not treated.

 

Concerned front line physicians discovered no research proving that

assumption and discovered they could successfully treat the growing numbers of

serious ill Lyme patients with antibiotics.

 

Camp A, walking about with egg on their face at that point, dilly-dallied

about until they were eventually forced to jump on the band wagon and declare,

yes, a short course of antibiotics would cure Lyme disease.

 

As Lyme patients began returning to doctors waiting rooms when short courses

of antibiotics failed, retreatment or longer courses of antibiotics were

found to help these patients recover.

 

After a good deal of foot dragging, Camp A eventually admitted they too were

successful when extending treatment courses, and admitted that retreating

patients who remained ill might, on a rare occasion, be necessary.

 

For a number of years, Camp A's wavering and ineffectual protocols adversely

affected

thousands of patients and their families.

 

In turn, countless numbers of patients

suffered from chronic Lyme infections, often resulting in permanent damage

and/or death.

 

In desperation, patients searched world wide for physicians who would help

them properly address their ongoing infections and multiple symptoms.

 

As the number of Lyme cases increased across the country and some patients

were able to see positive results with proper treatment, Camp A came under

fire from newly formed Lyme organizations and front line physicians who had

documented proof that the infectious organisms often survive after short term

treatment.

 

The mounting evidence gathered concluded that long term treatment resulted

in more successful outcomes for many patients.

 

They noted that it was not only necessary to treat the chronically ill, but

it was the humane thing to do.

 

Camp A doctors dug in their heels when they discovered physicians in other

areas had proven them wrong again. The good news that patients could improve

with longer

courses of treatment fell on deaf ears.

 

It wasn't until Camp A discovered more money could be funneled their way by

developing a vaccine to prevent Lyme that they actually changed their views

and suddenly admitted Lyme was indeed a devastating and debilitating illness.

 

Camp A suddenly flip flopped and abandoned their original claims of " no big

deal " as they promoted their recently developed vaccine that would save the

world from a horrible disease.

 

Television and newspaper advertisements began promoting Camp A's new vaccine

and Lyme disease quickly became a household word.

 

Some members in Camp A, no doubt with an eye on their precious bank

accounts, also found time to promote their newly

developed lab tests, claiming a quicker and more accurate result.

 

As Camp A raced to file patents and collect on their inventions, they padded

the medical journals with their detailed reports about the unremitting

consequences and serious nature of Lyme disease.

 

Finally feeling they were back on top of the Lyme world, they convinced the

CDC, major university hospitals, and unsuspecting physicians to promote their

vaccine. Little did they realize, while in their haste to line their

pockets, their apple cart was preparing to topple once again.

 

After reports of serious problems surfaced, the FDA issued warnings about

certain Lyme

disease tests and cautioned physicians and the public not to rely solely on

these tests

when diagnosing Lyme disease.

 

To make matters worse, the new vaccine that was once thought to be Camp A's

ticket to fame and fortune, quickly blew up in their faces after 1,000 plus

adverse event reports (complaints) were filed with the FDA.

 

The lab tests and the vaccine, which many in Camp A considered to be their

proverbial ship coming in, suddenly sank.

 

Legal actions and multiple lawsuits threatened Camp A's reputation and

livelihood.

 

As panic set in and the sparks began to fly in Camp A, internal battles over

money, positions, job benefits, and stocks ensued.

 

As the fires raged, there was a serious parting of the ways between some of

the members of Camp A's former good old boy

network. One after another, Camp A associates put their tails between their

legs and scattered near and far, while back in the kitchen the fires were

burning out of control.

 

Lyme patients, realizing the atrocities they had been subjected to, were

filing complaints and initiating legal actions against Camp A doctors and the

brown-nosing insurance companies.

 

Many patients had become permanently disabled or had lost family members as

a result of Camp A's inattentive response to their illness and quest for the

almighty dollar.

 

The patients believed the very ones they had trusted and paid dearly to help

them regain their health, had knowingly caused them irreversible harm.

 

Certain Camp A members were accused of failing to diagnose or properly treat

serious infectious diseases and the courts agreed.

Compensation in the millions of dollars were awarded to disabled victims as

a result of legal actions.

 

Attorneys, on behalf of patients who died or reported serious complications

from the vaccine, also filed lawsuits against Camp A members.

 

Floating up the creek without a paddle, Camp A was forced, once again, to

flip flop their position in an attempt to save their rear ends. They began the

" cover your rump "

campaign which consisted of shouting to anyone who would listen, true or

not, that Lyme was, once again, over diagnosed and over treated.

 

Having backed themselves in a corner, Camp A tried to convince the public

that patients suffered more from " Lyme anxiety " instead of a serious infectious

disease that could disable or kill them.

 

Camp A tried to convince other physicians and patients that positive tests

for Lyme were often false positives and labs that specialized in detecting

tick-borne diseases were faulty for one reason or another.

 

They buddied up with insurance companies who were delighted to discuss any

dollar saving tactics that were hidden up the sleeves of Camp A leaders.

 

Camp A doctors went so far as to claim that people with Lyme were not

actively infected and often not physically ill but instead they suffered from a

mental disorder called, " antibiotic seeking behavior " .

 

This bad publicity allowed insurance companies to sneak in and develop

guidelines that would reduce the length of time (and money) needed to treat

Lyme

patients for active infections.

 

Camp A doctors with a dwindling patient load spent their spare time in court

testifying against Lyme patients.

 

Some, who obviously had high opinions of themselves and too much time on

their hands, testified against front line physicians who had been successfully

treating chronically ill Lyme patients in an attempt to discredit them in the

public's eye.

 

In order to try and gain credibility, Camp A doctors also granted press

interviews and

sparked a miniature media frenzy around themselves.

 

To insure their views concerning Lyme would be taken seriously, some Camp A

doctors announced they actually needed

body guards to protect them from Lyme patients who didn't really have Lyme,

but some sort of mental illness instead.

 

The literature coming from Camp A once again promoted the false assumption

that the treatment time required to cure Lyme should be shortened dramatically

and in turn, their new best friends, the insurance companies, placed them

high on their pedestals.

 

In an attempt to boost their credibility, Camp A members continued to

publish additional

papers. Evidently, their attempts to mislead other physicians and the public

failed

miserably and they resorted to using themselves as their own references in

reports.

 

As the self-promotion of Camp A doctors became unbearable, hundreds of

chronically sick and disabled patients from across the county gathered together

and peacefully protested Camp A meetings.

 

Adding insult to injury, some of the world's leading tick-borne disease

specialists walked out of a Camp A conference in NY City in protest, claiming

the

Camp A conference was spewing nothing more than hog wash.

 

Camp A deserves some credit for coming close to being successful in one

arena. Flip

flopping about over the years has allowed them to have nearly completed a

full circle in

their little world of Lyme disease.

 

Some of their most recently published articles claims that only ONE dose of

Doxycycline is needed to prevent Lyme disease, and oh what a magic pill it

must be, indeed!

 

Perhaps if Camp A continues on their stroll backwards through time, anyone

with a tick bite may soon be able to simply click their heels together and

wish away any serious infectious disease.

 

Considering the fact Lyme disease currently costs society over a billion

dollars a year and can ultimately destroy the lives of hundreds of thousands of

people, this should be considered a true miracle. In the meantime...

 

Camp B, unfortunately growing larger by the day, disagrees wholeheartedly

with Camp A

on many points.

 

Camp B knows through personal experience and scientific research that Lyme

disease can be a complicated infectious disease that destroys lives and at the

least requires prompt, intense, and aggressive treatment in order to have a

better chance at a successful outcome.

 

With so many people originally following the misguided lead of Camp A

doctors, Lyme disease web sites now are booming and receive approximately one

half

of a million hits a month from patients in need of assistance with tick borne

diseases.

 

Hundreds of new Lyme education and support groups have formed across the

country and the leaders report being overwhelmed by the growing numbers of

terribly ill patients they see who were booted out of Camp A offices while

still

actively infected with tick borne diseases.

 

Telephone hot lines dedicated to providing information for people with Lyme

disease respond to over 100,000 calls a year and membership in Lyme

organizations has reached approximately 200,000.

 

As the public demands to know more, numerous articles and books are being

published on how to deal with Lyme disease and co-infections.

 

While Camp A sucks up available grant money to try and support their

antiquated notions, private groups across the country are holding dinners,

dances,

walk-a-thon's and other fund raisers and are donating money for the serious

help needed with Lyme disease research.

 

The Camp B physicians on the front lines are increasingly overwhelmed with

the

numbers of new cases of tick-borne disease patients showing up in the United

States.

 

Many of their patients come to them already severely and chronically ill

after following

the outdated protocols and recommendations of Camp A.

 

As the diseases within them take a stronger hold, patients are suffering and

dying from a disease reported to be " easily cured and easily treated " by

Camp A followers.

 

Unfortunately, most of us know people in Camp B who have suffered from

tick-borne

illnesses.

 

Documented research over the past twenty five years, along with biopsy and

autopsy reports, countless medical documents, and bacteria cultured from

patients tissues

after treatment, has proven beyond a doubt that Lyme is a complex infection

that can

remain active and destructive after treatment.

 

In addition, Lyme may be complicated by

other tick-borne infections, yet Camp A followers continue to promote their

flawed

reasoning and protocols.

 

Members of Camp B have learned the hard way that Lyme is not, " over

diagnosed,

over treated, or easily cured " . Many patients who were ill for many months

or even

years actually do improve once they have a proper diagnosis and proper

treatment.

 

For their efforts and dedication to the patient's well being, Camp B

front-line physicians are now under pressure and direct attack for treating

patients

with chronic Lyme disease.

 

They are ridiculed by their peers, investigated by medical boards, and are

threatened with loosing their licenses if they treat patients who have

suffered at the hands of Camp A.

 

So why do Camp A doctors still refuse to diagnose or treat a serious

debilitating infectious disease or check for and treat co-infections that may

be

complicating the picture?

 

The answer is simple, but shameful. One reason for this atrocity is that

some of them

haven't kept abreast of, or are ignoring years of medical research and

documentation that

proves them wrong.

 

In addition, many in Camp A refuse to actually listen to their own patients

and continually dismiss complaints and ongoing symptoms.

 

The third reason is that Camp A doctors may be in fear of loosing their

medical licenses and livelihoods if they don't stick to their guns and continue

to support their original mistakes.

 

After all, some of the successful Lyme disease lawsuits against doctors were

for not properly diagnosing and treating Lyme disease.

 

Lastly, insurance companies are loosing money when treating chronic Lyme

patients and we all know that hurts a good number of

powerful pocket books and ultimately influences the course and cost of

treatment.

 

Why should you be concerned about the situation? There are growing numbers of

chronically ill and disabled children and adults still stumbling out of Camp

A after they have been improperly tested or treated for tick-borne illnesses.

 

More people are loosing the battle with Lyme disease after years of pain and

suffering.

Physicians who are brave enough and concerned enough to care for these

patients are being harassed, ridiculed, and shut down. The madness must stop.

 

Bottom line...

 

If Camp A were right, there wouldn't be a Camp B.

written by Tincup, Lucy Barnes

-----

 

 

WHY WE DON'T GET BETTER ON SHORT TERM ANTIBIOTICS:

(From Dr. Burrascano)

 

As the spirochete has a very long generation time (12 to 24 hours in vitro

and possibly much longer in living systems) and may have periods of dormancy,

during which time antibiotics will not kill the organism, treatment has to

be continued for a long period of time to eradicate all the active symptoms

and prevent a relapse, especially in late infections.

 

If treatment is discontinued before all symptoms of active infection have

cleared, the patient will remain ill and possibly relapse further.

 

In general, early LB is treated for 4 - 6 weeks, and late LB usually

requires a minimum of 4 - 6 months of continuous treatment. All patients

respond

differently and therapy must be individualized.

 

It is not uncommon for a patient who has been ill for many years to require

open ended treatment regimens; indeed, some patients will require ongoing

maintenance therapy for years to remain well.

 

Several days after the onset of appropriate antibiotic therapy, symptoms

often flare due to lysis of the spirochetes with release of increased amount of

antigenic material and possibly bacterial toxins. This is referred to as a

Jarisch Herxheimer-like reaction.

 

Because it takes 48 to 72 hours of therapy to initiate bacterial killing,

the Herxheimer reaction is therefore delayed. This is unlike syphilis, in which

these reactions can occur within hours.

--------------------

 

May is Lyme Awareness Month!!!!!

 

Symptoms of Lyme Disease

Denise Lang's List of Symptoms (Dr. Burrascano's original list with the

format and additions of Kathy Cavert)

 

The Tick Bite

1. Tick bite (deer, dog or other)

2. Rash at site of bite

3. Rashes on other parts of your body

4. Rash basically circular and spreading out

5. Raised rash, disappearing and recurring

 

(NOTE: See the_ Lyme Disease Foundation_ (http://www.lyme.org/) website for

pictures of Lyme rashes.)

 

Head, Face, Neck

6. Unexplained hair loss

7. Headache, mild or severe

8. Twitching of facial or other muscles

9. Facial paralysis (Bell's Palsy)

10. Tingling of nose, cheek or face

11. Stiff or painful neck

12. Jaw pain or stiffness

13. Sore throat

 

Eyes/Vision

14. Double or blurry vision

15. Increased floating spots

16. Pain in eyes, or swelling around eyes

17. Oversensitivity to light

18. Flashing lights

 

Ears/Hearing

19. Decreased hearing in one or both ears

20. Buzzing in ears

21. Pain in ears

22. Ringing in one or both ears

 

Digestive and Excretory Systems

23. Diarrhea

24. Constipation

25. Irritable bladder (trouble starting, stopping)

26. Upset stomach (nausea or pain)

 

Musculoskeletal System

27. Joint pain or swelling

28. Stiffness of joints, back, neck

29. Muscle pain or cramps

 

Respiratory and Circulatory Systems

30. Shortness of breath, cough

31. Chest pain or rib soreness

32. Night sweats or unexplained chills

33. Heart palpitations or extra beats

34. Heart blockage

 

Neurologic System

35. Tremors or unexplained shaking

36. Burning or stabbing sensations in the body

37. Weakness or partial paralysis

38. Pressure in the head

39. Numbness in body, tingling, pinpricks

40. Poor balance, dizziness, difficulty walking

41. Increased motion sickness

42. Lightheadedness, wooziness

 

Psychological well-being

43. Mood swings, irritability

44. Unusual depression

45. Disorientation (getting or feeling lost)

46. Feeling as if you are losing your mind

47. Overemotional reactions, crying easily

48. Too much sleep, or insomnia

49. Difficulty falling or staying asleep

 

Mental Capability

50. Memory loss (short or long term)

51. Confusion, difficulty in thinking

52. Difficulty with concentration or reading

53. Going to the wrong place

54. Speech difficulty (slurred or slow)

55. Stammering speech

56. Forgetting how to perform simple tasks

 

Reproduction and Sexuality

57. Loss of sex drive

58. Sexual dysfuntion

females only:

59. Unexplained menstrual pain, irregularity

60. Unexplained breast pain, disc harge

Males only:

61. Testicular or pelvic pain

 

General Well-being

62. Unexplained weight gain, loss

63. Extreme fatigue

64. Swollen glands

65. Unexplained fevers (high or low grade)

66. Continual infections (sinus, kidney, eye, etc.)

67. Symtpoms seem to change, come and go

68. Pain migrates (moves) to different body parts

69. Early on, experienced a " flu-like " illness, after which you have not

since felt well.

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

I had recently discovered a tick and the " bullseye " rash on my thigh so went to

my doctor. I was prescribed a 14 day course of Doxycycline. The titer taken that

afternoon and just before the doxy was begun came back negative. Should I still

be concerned that I could still have the disease? If yes, is there any herbs or

a homeopathic that could be used instead of the antibiotics? I was wondering if

Goldenseal and/or Chapparal for herb examples that might help?

 

Thanks

 

 

 

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Check out fitting gifts for grads at Search.

 

 

[Guest guest]

Both my dogs have been treated with the doxycycline. One of them just

started a second three week course yesterday. My vet said they don't

build up antibodies against the disease once they are infected, treated

and made well. Now there is another tick bourne virus also treated with

the antiboitic but is not Lyme disease. It's called anaplasm and/or

ecoli something which large numbers of dogs in his practice in CT are

testing positive for including my two. The symptoms were similar to

Lyme, I'm guessing. Hard to know for sure since the dogs can't tell you

how they feel. But seeing how long it took to get my female well,

months and months maybe six months or longer, I decided to have the

male start a second course of treatment after he started limping and

walking stiffly last week.