The Disappearing Pathogen Puzzle
There’s no doubt that Lyme is a serious threat. Approximately 20-30,000 people get Lyme disease from deer tick bites every year. Untreated the bacteria can cause heart, neurological problems and arthritis. Treated, the symptoms usually do disappear but not always. In some people who are treated, unfortunately the problems can continue for years.
The big question in the Lyme community is if its due to a reactivated infection or something else? Did the first round of antibiotics leave some of the bug behind or did it simply eliminate the bug a bit too late – after the damage had been done?
The consequences of that decision can be enormous. If you and your doctor believe the Lyme bacteria is still present after treatment, even if tests suggest it is not, then you may be in the store for a year or more of strong antibiotics and all that can entails. On the other hand, if you don’t believe that then you have other options ()but not a lot of them.)
Another Diagnostic Dilemma
As with other pathogens, diagnosing Lyme disease is not straight forward. A very heterogeneous bacteria means some antibody tests could miss a strain and a positive test is not necessarily indicative of an active infection. Since IgG and IgM antibodies can linger at high levels for years after successful treatment they’re not good indicators either. Positive culture and PCR tests can verify that Lyme is present but negative tests don’t rule it out.
Indeed a recent paper stated “There is currently no method available which, in addition to the serology, answers the question as to whether a specific case is a status post Borrelia infection or active borreliosis.” Determining whether an infection is still active is still, often a judgment call.
It’s another pathogen muddle….
The Study
This study should help a bit. It asked whether Lyme disease patients who’s erythum migrans rash popped up again after successful treatment had suffered a relapse or had gotten bitten by a different tick and become infected again. In all cases the genetic tests indicating that the second rash was due to a different strain of Borrelia and once they were treated with antibiotics again their symptoms and the infection disappeared again.
This suggested, contrary to received opinion in much of the Lyme disease advocacy community a) that Lyme infections are mostly effectively treated with the antibiotic protocols available and b) long term antibiotic therapy is not necessary.
This study suggests that
- If you have a Lyme rash by all means get it treated with several weeks or a month or so of antibiotics.
- If you had Lyme, been treated for it, got better and then relapsed you may very well have become re- infected. See your doctor for further tests and possibly another short-term round of treatment
- If you’ve had Lyme, been treated for it and never became well stay long term antibiotic regimes are probably not the answer. Several studies have shown that long term antibiotic treatment of Lyme disease is not more effective than placebo and, of course, caries risks of its own.
ME/CFS All Over Again?
There’s no doubt that the chronic Lyme patients are sick. If long term antibiotics aren’t the answer the question quickly becomes what tunnel they should go down next. Interestingly, the pathway may converge with another disorder with a pathogen puzzle; chronic fatigue syndrome.
Some striking similarities between the two disorders exist. Both can be triggered by infections and in their chronic state both are very difficult to treat. Both produce ‘highly varied and ambiguous’ symptoms and both, in many doctors practices, have become wastebasket disorders they plunk patients they don’t know what else to do with. From the editorial…
Moreover, chronic Lyme disease has become a common diagnosis for medically unexplained pain or neurocognitive or fatigue symptoms, even when there is little or no evidence of previous B. burgdorferi infection.
The editorial accompanying the study suggested the infection had either triggered an autoimmune response or that ‘spirochetal antigens’ remained. Pathogens can trigger autoimmune disorders and the Rituximab results suggest some people with ME/CFS could have an autoimmune disorder (or an infection).
Herpesviruses Rear Their Heads? There’s also the question of multiple undiagnosed infections. Lyme disorder patients are probably not often tested for herpesviruses (and chronic fatigue syndrome patients are probably not all that often tested for Lyme), yet Dr. Lerner has found that identifying Lyme disease when its present in ME/CFS patients with herpesvirus infections made a critical difference in his ability to treat them effectively.
Could the same be true in Lyme disease? Could the non-responsive patients have an undiagnosed herpesvirus infection? (Unfortunately the same type of diagnostic dilemma is present in herpesvirus infections).
The Future
Can we throw Borrelia burdorfii into the growing list of pathogens (EBV, parvovirus, Giardia, coxsackie, SARS) known to trigger a CFS-like state? Can we throw chronic Lyme disease (ie Lyme disease that does not resolve with antibiotics) into the post-viral subset of ME/CFS?
Lyme, ME/CFS, fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, interstitial cystitis – the list could probably go on for a while (rheumatoid arthritis) – can all be triggered by infections. The big question, of course, is how…..
We’ll keep an eye on Lyme researchers to see what they dig up.
SUPPORT HEALTH RISING
Cort,
I will explain January 28th in Reno what the interrelationship is between these infections and how they play a role in the pathophysiology of ME/CFS. There were a few things missing which ‘glue’ everything together ; Our findindings will be published in 2013.
Kenny
Very much looking forward to your insights on this oh, so complex, subject Dr. DeMeirleir. Thanks…
Will the January 28th lecture be open to the public? If so, could we have more details regarding location, time and cost?
Thank you!
Yes the Klimas lecture will be open to the public and I’ll be posting on the details of that soon…
Can’t find what event takes place in Reno the 28th. Can you give a hint?
Sorry Esme – I think its the 28th..or the 26th…Dr. Klimas is holding a day long patient conference in Southern Florida with a great panel. I’ll send something about it soon. 🙂
Thanks, but Klimas is not De Meirleir and Reno is not in Florida 😉
Guess I’ll have to wait and see.
Ah, found it. Just needed to check what acutally ís in Reno:
http://www.wpinstitute.org/news/docs/SaveTheDate_012813.pdf
Those conclusions are not supported by the study. It changes nothing about the current understanding of Lyme treatment.
Wow.. A total wash. Granted I know very little about Lyme…Can you say what issues you had with the study….
Thanks Cort, as always. I’m so glad to have found your new site. Keep up the good work please.
Thanks as always for your support. I appreciate it…:)
‘Granted I know very little about Lyme’ What a pity you didn’t start this post stating this or even better finding out more about the sound research emerging that shows why long term antibiotics can help some patients and may be required.
NIH researcher of many years with Borrelia, Benjamin Luft said at IOM workshop in 2010 that ALL Borrelia are relapsing illnesses http://lookingatlyme.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/ben-luft-presentation-to-iom.html
Steven Barthold another NIH researcher of many years with animal models and Borrelia says that Borrelia persists that is the Norm http://lookingatlyme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/global-challenges-in-diagnosing-and.html
Recently published research shows that Borrelia form Biofilms just one way that they can persist http://lookingatlyme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/biofilm-and-borrelia-burgdorferi.html
I am one of very many patients that found their Fibro, ME/CFS, Musculoskeletal Disease, Polymyalgia Rheumatica turned out to be Lyme Disease and long term antibiotics helped me regain my health and my life.
Borrelia an organism whose DNA has been found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients http://miklossy.ch/ deserves more extensive consideration from our Health Authorities and more research. Dr MacDonald made some interesting comments about Borrelia and bioflims which I re posted http://lookingatlyme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/why-do-my-symptoms-improve-on.html
Good to hear Dr DeMeirlier will shortly be publishing I look forward to hearing more, I know patients that have seen him and been diagnosed with Lyme Disease and improved on long term antibiotics.
There is no doubt that all people with chronic illnesses struggle with a complex load of infections usually viral, protozoa and bacterial once these infections are treated many patients make improvements there is no magic bullet or cure all, any more than there is likely to be only one underlying cause.
Thanks Jonathan,
Like ME/CFS this is a very complex situation…Glad to hear that long term antibiotics worked for you, there are patients who do well on short term antibiotics and there are people who don’t do well on either. I think this shows that subsets are present, they need to be uncovered and more research needs to be done.
Quoting Joanne: “there is no magic bullet or cure all, any more than there is likely to be only one underlying cause”.
Maybe, but there are certain commonalities of symptoms in Lyme, fibromyalgia and ME/CFS — for example, brain fog (cognitive dysfunction) is common to all — and the biochemical mechanism behind these common symptoms such as brain fog may conceivably be similar in all these illnesses, even if the primary infectious cause or causes is different.
That’s what I’m thinking altho its obviously just a guess at this point. The same may apply to FM patients with infectious onset….What a fascinating thing if they found common pathways in all these disorders. In ME/CFS we know that different infections trigger similar symptoms and there does seem to be some common pathways….
What about disorders like rheumatoid arthritis with high fatigue states in some individuals? RA is often triggered by an infectious event as well…
So much interesting stuff….all we need is the money (!).
Please investigate the connection with autoimmune diseases like Rheumatoid Arthritis. Lyme Disease was my initial infection 23 years ago. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome soon followed, then Fibromyalgia. Three years ago I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Symptoms have varied slightly over the years, but now the damage is clearly evident. I know several people with a similar progression.
And yes, I also had mono/ Epstein Barr in college 40 years ago.
Thanks for sharing research. It gives us hope.
Dear Cort,
Interesting to read about the changes in your life. I look forward to reading what you have to say on this new site. (I’m already printing off a couple of your articles to peruse in further depth.)
Thanks for all the work you do on behalf of us CFS’ers.
Marcia Morrison
in Salem, Massachusetts
Thanks Marcia…I look forward to good things and, of course, there’s lots to say 🙂
This really interesting study could found protein profiles in cerebrospinal fluid which could differentiate ME/CFS patients from Lyme patients (and from healthy controls):
Distinct Cerebrospinal Fluid Proteomes Differentiate Post-Treatment Lyme Disease from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0017287
Do you know if this research has been or is being repeated? It looked so promising.
I believe it is being repeated and another completed study by Baraniuk looked at CSF. Dr. Peterson is also working on a CSP study with PHANU. I think they’ve just about gathered the funds together for that. These studies are REALLY expensive; its nice to see three of them in motion. Hopefully we’ll get some enlightening info:)
Glad to see you back at it. Looking forward to many new articles. Thanks for continuing. I have always wondered if Lyme was part of my disease, but no doctor has tested. Also there are so many articles that state Lyme testing is not always successful, you wonder after all these years if antibiotics would even work.
Anyway, thanks for the new site, looking forward to the new adventure and great articles as usual.
Here is to a Happy New Year!
Thanks Lynn…Lyme is a knotty subject…it is difficult to understand how to go with that, for sure. Perhaps somebody can chime in about testing.
Dr Horowitz presentation found at this link below gives a good overview for all patients with Chronic illnesses
http://lookingatlyme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/do-you-have-symptoms-that-migrate.html
Lynn Twohey if you suspect Lyme could be an underlying cause then you need to get informed ASAP and seek a doctor out that can help you or at the least you could send blood to IgeneX for testing – they are often considered one of the best labs but they too have false negatives but it would be a start at least if you want to read my story it is on my blog right hand column.
Research done by Samuel Shor a doctor specializing in CFS found a significant number of patients with CFS actually had Lyme here is a presentation from him with links to his research
http://lookingatlyme.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/samuel-shor-presentation-on-lyme.html
As I understand it, testing for Lyme is often inconclusive one way or the other, and too, a dx for Lyme is often ‘a guess’ ie non-specific for any certain pathogen, especially, lol, when no pathogen is even found.
It is also interesting that aggressive anitibiotic therapy for any documented Lyme spirochetes is frequently ‘non-resolving’ for symptoms.
But what do I know. lol Seriously. Very complex topic, the immune system and….physicians. Were science as precise, pristine as scientists like to make it out to be, I guess we could surmise that if you had a negative test for Lyme, you are not sick due to Lyme spirochete infection. But you never know, lol.
Back in the 90’s when I was a journalist ( when I had a brain), I got a call from a lady whose entire family was sick with/dx’d for Lyme. I went to see her. Tragic lot. ufff Her situation caused me to do some research on Lyme with the CDC. That effort led me to a pathologist in California, who will remain unnamed. ( She checked out: I won the Anson Jones Medical Writing Award for the article I wrote on Lyme subsequent to meeting the family that was so ill, suffering so much. )
The pathologist told me that she often found Lyme spirochete infested bodies at the morgue. She said that the state instructed her to tell the families of the deceased that their loved ones had died of Multiple Sclerosis. She was specifically instructed to omit any mention of Lyme spirochetes. And for what it is worth, I was stricken ill ( ostensibly with CFIDS, the meaningless acronym disease ) approximately a year after my visit to the family ill with Lyme disease..)
World is a weird place. Now you know. lol I wish I did not know some of the things that I know.
I posted this for…whatever its worth to …anyone. Did I leave you in a muddle or contest anything you know as ‘fact’? Just call me stupid. It doesn’t bother me, lol.
( “All we want are the facts, ma’am.” ~ Sgt. Joe Friday in the TV series ‘ Dragnet’ )
I am one of the many, many people whose Lyme and babesiosis went untreated for years and suffer from apparently permanent symptoms, as well as early menopause from this disease. I got “fibro’d” then “CFS’d” by doctors. Most CFIDS doctors know nothing about Lyme and don’t even do minimal testing. Worse, some are on the IDSA side, the insurance-industry-funded doctors who run an anti-Lyme patient campaign. Most people with Lyme are first diagnosed with fibro and/or CFIDS. Lyme doctors say 70% of CFS patients have Lyme. I believe Lyme causes CFIDS, and other things can also cause CFIDS, and that CFIDS is a disease in itself; however I also believe that most people with CFIDS have Lyme as an underlying cause. I think the Lyme damages the gut bacteria, causing yeast and leaky gut. Are the Lyme bacteria still active? I don’t know, but it’s a fair question, one that the IDSA tries to shut down.
That study you mention changes nothing. The people could have had more than one strain of borrelia to begin with. Not only that, but it was something like a dozen people.
Thanks Victoria,
I am surprised at how little Lyme information has penetrated ME/CFS medical practices. On a positive note, Dr. Lerner does look for Lyme and considers that treating it is essential in patients who have it. On the other hand, it may be that Lyme doctors may not be looking for herpesviruses which he finds regularly and which he believes need to be treated as well. On a third hand Dr. Natelson says he tests for Lyme and rarely finds it…It’s kind of mess…
After being ill with supposed ME/CFS for over two decades,because Dr mikovits and the WPI said they found Lyme in a large amount of their blood samples [2000 out of 3000 I think?],I got on a plane to Breakspear Hospital in England for testing.I recieved an equivocal Igenex test which was then helped out by a German accredited antigen test called a Melissa Ltt which tested positive and was given a clinical diagnosis of Chronic Lyme Disease and all the pitfalls that entails.As far as I was aware,the Melissa LTT was meant to be introduced to America in 2012 under the name Lympholyme Test!I swear I am not making this up.It does not seem to have happened yet which is a shame as it would have sorted out the problems of the very bogey serology tests and given credence to the existence of Chronic Lyme!I wonder what happened?Hmm.
Thanks Hilary, My sense of all medical stuff is it generally takes longer, sometimes much longer than expected to come to fruition. It may just be working its way through the system…
So how are you now? Are treatments working? Any progress?
Oh!Thanks for asking.My symptoms improved very much on just six weeks of doxycycline but then that particular doctor left Breakspear and I could not afford the new treatment.My symptoms returned with a vengence.I am trying herbs now,Buher protocal and veggie diet and have improved again.
This is very timely for me. I’ve had CFS since 1985, and it’s unlikely to have been Lyme……..I was living in NYC. I tested IgneneX positive IgM for 2 of 3 bands, in October. Negative IgG. I took doxy for a month and the local infectious diseases doctor pronounced me cured of my “supposed lyme” (?!) and said re-testing was useless.
I now understand that re-testing isn’t helpful, although I don’t understand how that’s possible But all of the research I’ve done has just given me headaches. I’ve learned that: a positive test might not mean active lyme, one month of doxy might cure lyme or might be useless, long term antibiotics might be necessary or…….useless.
Dr. Rey (Nancy Klimas’ partner) wants to redo all of my intake tests when the lyme is gone, I assume because lyme would skew the results. So I can’t start any CFS treatment with her until the lyme is gone. But I have no way of knowing (a) if I really have active lyme, and (b) if/when it’s gone.
Can anybody explain any of this to me?
Utterly Confused
AKA Madie
OMG…this is why I’ve stayed away from Lyme….its such important subject for sure but you dive into the deep end really quickly…. I wish I had any answers – I hope you find some. Good luck!
I’ll try.Serology tests are based on a person’s immune system antibody response to infection -in this case borrelia bacteria.Once you create antibodies to borrelia,doctors assume they will be there or made for life [not always true say people with chronic lyme] so further testing will always remain positive making future serology tests redundant.New testing techniques like the culture test from Advanced Labs Services I think ,would prove current infection as they are looking to grow the bacteria directly from your blood sample.The Ltt test proves current infection also by separating lymphocytes from blood,waving borrelia at them and if they react by producing someting called an antigen,then they have recognized a familiar foe.Since lymphocytes die off regularly the very fact they reacted to this particular bacteria proves current infection.Ta Dah!..I hope this helps.
Is this test incredibly brand-new? The real question being, is there any consensus that the test results are meaningful and useful for guiding treatment? It costs $595, and you have to be antibiotic-free for 4 weeks prior, so this is a big commitment……..but worth it if it’s definitive.
Yes,it is very new Madeleine and still in the process of being validated according to CFS Patient Advocate’s 29th november 2012 blog.Apparently ,it was presented at this years ILADS conference by Dr Joe Burrascano who fully endorses this test. Still it is expensive and I would like it to be validated first myself.
The Winter 2012/13 newsletter of the National CFIDS Foundation (pages 1 & 7) highlighted the following interesting recent study – I wonder had Cort been thinking of it:
Differentiation of Reinfection from Relapse in Recurrent Lyme Disease http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1114362
Conclusions:
“None of the 22 paired consecutive episodes of erythema migrans were associated with the same strain of B. burgdorferi on culture. Our data show that repeat episodes of erythema migrans in appropriately treated patients were due to reinfection and not relapse.”
Interesting observations from Dr MacDonald pathologist who has investigated Borrelia for many years posted on Lymnet Europe forum
http://www.lymeneteurope.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=4346&start=70
‘ReInfection is Reinfection.
Relapse conditions Ie “Relapsing Erythema migrans” over a time scale of months to decades
have Never been reported in the peer reviewed dermatologic literature.
To comingle Reinfecton ( non-controversial) with Relapsing episodes of Skin ONLY Erythema migrans
[never been reported in the Dermatologic literature]
is an assault on the collective intelligence of the readers of this forum.
To Further escalate the discussion to incorporate issues of Chronic active persistent antibiotic resistant
Lyme borrreliosis is like comparing apple seeds to sequoia trees.
Chronic active persistent Lyme borreliosis patients do not seek medical care
in North America for recurring erythema migrans lesions over a months to decades time scale.
Organ system involvement DEEP TO THE DERMIS is the stuff of Chronic active persistent
antibiotic resistant Lyme Borreliosis.
The Skin is indeed the largest organ.
Cutaneous manifestations – chronic over time – are a reality in European Lyme Borreliosis.
I invite you to enjoy the unbridled scholarly discussion of
a physician who is never wrong and never in doubt: Click on the arrow over the image of the bald headed
white haired suit near the top of the article in the link below and
let us reason together.
Link:
Repeat Lyme Is Reinfection, Not Relapse’
http://www.medpagetoday.com/InfectiousD … ease/35952
Betterhealthguy (Scott) reports back on the Chronic Health Conf starring Burrascano & Fry from Fry labs among others. Discusses testing, inflammation, biofilms & co-infections…
http://www.publichealthalert.org/pdf/2013/2013_1.pdf
Hi Cort,
Is there a way to get a printable copy of any of your articles? I do better with printed copies for reading and learning…
thanks,
Mary
Thanks for reminding me Mary. I will get a print option up on the blogs 🙂
You can’t talk about Lyme in a vacuum -There are so many other tickborn infections that are likely to co-exist with Lyme, that it is rare for it to ever be “just” Lyme for starters, altho it has been shown to hang on despite initial treatment ( http://lymedisease.org/news/lymepolicywonk/lymepolicywonk-new-study-shows-lyme-persists-in-monkeys.html ) I’ve been ill with CFIDS since age 19 after a year of mono (likely CMV, not EB) (tho curiously I’d gotten a tick on me 2 weeks before becoming ill to start with). I’ve had ups/downs ever since then, however starting in mid 1990s its been a downward spiral that’s been different, starting with the “flu” every 4-6 weeks for over a year. I had a positive Lyme test that was ignored around 2001. My son became ill, same symptoms as mine (flu & fatigue etc around 2004, but then was dropping weight and having many more problems (same symptoms as Fibro). Due to publicity about Lyme at that time, & because all the “regular diagnostic tests” showed nothing, I had him tested: he had an unequivocally + WB 2X within 6 months – but also exhibited the sweats of Babesia and problems associated with Bartonella. 3.5 years of abx and other meds stabilized him.
I’ve been disabled with ME/CFS for 21 years, so I’ve followed (and appreciated) your blog, looking for answers for years, and hoping for a cure. I learned a year ago that I have Lyme disease along with Babesia and Bartonella (and I believe these infections have been the cause of my CFS from the very beginning).
Babesia is a parasite similar to malaria which causes severe fatigue, frontal headaches (sometimes horrific), weight gain, etc. Sound familiar?
Often patients are infected with Babesia and Lyme from the same tick bite (and Bartonella as well, and each infection complicates the others.)
As with Lyme (borrelia), the diagnostic tests for Babesia and other tick infections are NOTOROUSLY UNRELIABLE (the Lyme screening test, the ELIZA, is 40-60% accurate, according to various sources, so you might as well flip a coin as pay for a test!) If your test is “negative” it proves nothing (you may still have Lyme disease!)
I’m amazed that the ME/CFS community hasn’t embraced the fact that Lyme Disease (and the related tick-borne infections of Babesia and Bartonella) are likely to blame for many cases of CFS and Fibromyalgia. The various “subgroups” of ME/CFS may very well be due to different combinations of Lyme, Babesia, Bartonella and other tick-borne infections.
Please don’t be taken in by the “chronic Lyme Disease doesn’t exist and LD is always cured with 28 days of Doxycycline” propaganda marketed by the IDSA and the CDC. For a more thorough understanding of the current state of Lyme disease and Babesia infections, see the excellent series of articles in the Poughkeepsie (NY) Journal (currently being recommended for a Pulitzer Prize) by Mary Beth Pfeiffer via this link: http://lymedisease.org/news/touchedbylyme/pojo-pulitzer-possibility.html
For more info on Babesia Dr. Schaller’s free supplement might be worth a look at : http://www.personalconsult.com/BabesiaUpdate2009-ebook.pdf
Everyone with ME/CFS or Fibromyalgia should watch the documentary “Under Our Skin” and read Pamela Weintraub’s excellent book “Cure Unknown”.
Lymedisease.org and the ILADS.org website are also good sources of info on Lyme, etc.
Cort, I urge you to put Lyme Disease and Babesia at the forefront of the ME/CFS debate in 2013. These are treatable diseases that could save ME/CFS patients YEARS OF SUFFERING if caught earlier.
And best of luck with your new venture.
Thanks Julie…
How are you doing after the diagnosis? Any improvements?
Hi Cort, thanks for asking.
Definitely not “cured” yet, but some things have improved.
For example, orthostatic intolerance (OI) has improved somewhat, so I can stand up longer now (still not for long stretches, but better).
Some neurological issues (muscle jerking and twitching) have mostly subsided; and I now have some days when the “fog” lifts and my brain actually works. Thinking is a treat!
A year ago I was sleeping 2-4 hours every 2-3 days (one particularly bed week I slept 14 hours total in 7 days). Now I’m getting 6-12 hours of sleep/night, so that’s made life significantly better. “To sleep, perchance to dream! Ay, there’s the rub!”
I certainly can’t guarantee everyone with CFS has Babesia or Lyme or will be cured on long-term antibiotics. But my hope is that anyone that gets “ME/CFS” from now on won’t have to suffer 20 years before they get accurate testing and proper effective treatment for an infectious disease like Lyme or Babesia, if that’s really the cause of their illness.
Unfortunately the current political state of Lyme disease testing & treatment is almost worse than CFS! That’s why it’s important to spread the word to CFS sufferers to GET INFORMED ABOUT LYME DISEASE (and Babesia, Bartonella, etc.)! It may save your life! And the sooner the better. Early treatment seems to be the key to getting well.
Just beware, there are 2 sides to the Lyme debate. Don’t believe everything you see or hear, especially if someone says “You don’t have Lyme!” What if they’re wrong?
I wish I’d known Lyme disease and Babesia could cause CFS 20 years ago. I’m hoping this will help save someone else 20 years of unnecessary suffering. The internet and blogs like yours have empowered millions with information. Keep up the great work.
Getting more sleep is huge; you can’t go anywhere if you can’t get sleep… Did you ever get tested for herpesviruses?
No, haven’t yet had the pleasure!
Hello
Does anyone knows more about the lecture of Prof De Meirleir that was announced for today at the WPI?
See first comment
“De Meirleir Kenny says:
December 29, 2012 at 7:35 am
Cort,
I will explain January 28th in Reno what the interrelationship is between these infections and how they play a role in the pathophysiology of ME/CFS. There were a few things missing which ‘glue’ everything together ; Our findindings will be published in 2013.
Kenny”
Thanks
Els
The WPI is videotaping the lecture and it will be available to everyone in the near future.
Thank you!
It is good to see Advanced Labs have gotten their validation study published for the new culture test [see joanne draysons blog-‘looking at lyme’ for details].I am hoping this will really change things for the missed out lyme patients due to the dodgy serology tests.
Glad Cortene and others are trialing possible lyme therapies.
Here is a report of hard-working researchers engaged in tracking down more promising treatments:
https://www.dovepress.com/identification-of-new-drug-candidates-against-borrelia-burgdorferi-usi-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-DDDT