Question & Answers - 5. Question

Question:

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Dear Sir or Madam!
In 1992 I was diagnosed with Lyme disease, I have had various forms of oral antibiotic treatments including IV, none have given me a long term results. I have also in the last year have been using a Rife machine once a week with no results. I have for such long time experiencing extreme fatigue, muscle and join pain in my arms and shoulders. I’m 62 years old and my daily life is difficult in addition I have a problem sleeping because of the pain. Doctors have prescribed anti-depression drugs however I prefer not to take them as it does not cure the problem. Is there any help out there in the international medical field?
Best Regards,
D.

Answer:

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Dear Mr. D.,
first of all it seems important not to mix up Lyme disease and TBE. As you migth probably know in the case of TBE (a viral infection) there is no anti-infective treatment.
According to your mail you´ve been diagnosed with Lyme disease in 1992 and received AB treatment repeatedly. I must confess that my experience with borreliosis of US origin is limited (causative agent: Borrelia burgdorferi sensu strictu) whereas we have a vast experience with the European subtypes (Borrelia burdorferi sensu latu including B. afzellii and B. garinii). At least here in Europe the diagnositc tools (by far!) and also some therapeutic approaches have changed since so it seems rational to do a roll-up of the diagnosis with a specialist (I´m sure you can find someone on the web not too far from your home).
Just to tell you: A) here in Europe many people have serological markers against Borreliosis (in US mostly called Lyme disease which according to the causative agent may present in a different clinical picture as compared to the European form of Borreliosis) without having any symptoms (so it seems important not to make them feel sick by a wrong interpretation of the test result). B) In addition there are also many people who do have uncharacteristic symptoms and a positive serology where it is very doubtful whether the symptoms are caused by Borrelia. C) On the other hand we see even severe forms of Borrelia infections where it is mandatory to treat in an optimal way. Since there is no sharp border between the two groups mentionned at last (B,C) we sometimes also use the principle of "ex iuvantibus" which means that we give treatment and check whether it helps or not. Especially in these doubtful cases it is important to stick with a proven therapy (product, dosage, way of application, duration!! - at least three weeks) since in these cases this is the one and only way to prove or rule out Borreliosis.
Additional comment: if the disease in your case was diagnosed and treated as Borreliosis correctly but late the symptoms you have might be residuals meaning that they might be due to "scars" after a treated infection and not to an active infection - in this case ABs won´t help.
All the best,
Dr. Martin Haditsch

DDr. Martin Haditsch
Aö KH der Elisabethinen Linz
Inst. für Hygiene, Mikrobiologie und Tropenmedizin

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