Topic: Where have all the reported cases of Lyme gone?
Tincup
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
Member # 5829
posted
Something to consider... and here are a few examples.
CT had 3,058 reported cases of Lyme last year.
This year they have had NONE.
Kansas had 173... now NONE.
Maryland had 2,576 and now they only have 334.
Massachusetts had 2,988 and now only 486.
Wisconsin has 1,816 and now only 118.
YES, I know the year isn't over yet... but the numbers should be much higher in those states. Compare them to California for example.
And note- when Maryland didn't count entire counties for two years... and they were "caught"... they would NOT go back and add those numbers... and Maryland had WAY low figures because of it.
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The new surveillance criteria is working just as predicted.
It's NOT!!!!
BUT... the Healthy People 2000... the one where the health departments were suppose to reduce the cases by 15 percent... and got a budget to do it....
Well, they blew it by EEEE- GADS already.. but they MIGHT be able to bring down the numbers by doing it this way.
Ya think they are getting ready for their new budget proposals.. with hands out .. or shall I say with hands in YOUR pockets (tax money) ..
And geared up for writing their 2010 Healthy People report to Congress.. so they show how GOOD they did with Lyme over the past 10 years?
If so... WAIT!
What about the new vaccines?
How can they promote a vaccine for a disease that is no longer a problem? A disease that no one is even getting any more?
OUCH on THAT IDSA pocket book!!!!!
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In the meantime.. back at the ranch...
You MIGHT want to contact YOUR health department and start asking questions. Like why are no or low numbers being reported... and will they be added later?
You might want to get the person in charge and ask what is going on.. and ask them to send you a copy of their procedure for counting cases.
posted
This is terrible. I don't understand how the revision in surveillance criteria could have produced this result. Why would it reduce the number of cases to have the lab evidence now accepting a western blot instead of just the two step process? Seems like there should have been more cases reported instead of less. My mind is boggled. This is sure something that needs to be part of any congressional hearing in the future.
Posts: 8430 | From Not available | Registered: Oct 2000
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Tincup
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
Member # 5829
posted
Yes, terrible for sure.
You said.. "Why would it reduce the number of cases to have the lab evidence now accepting a western blot instead of just the two step process?"
This is a complex situation... one I can't dig into right now.. but...
The new criteria state each state must be "endemic" which is translated to a variety of ways to determine that.
Missouri, for example, states there is no more Lyme there... only a "Lyme-like" illness. They are requiring each county to have evidence of ticks having Lyme in an official report .. ONLY Borrelia burgdorferi... before they declare the county to have Lyme.
OR... they require a minimum of 2 patients to meet ALL criteria (tests, symptoms, rash, engorged tick, etc) and have a skin biopsy of the rash proviong it is Borrelia burgdorfei... before that county is considered to be Lyme endemic.
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Then there is the tests. The standard is tougher now.
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Then there is the 3 categories. Instead of having Lyme or not.. there are waste basket categories now in which a health department person can toss a report if it doesn't meet all the requirements.
Not all of the categories will be counted.. and not so energetic workers who don't want to spend time counting cases or checking with labs and doctors offices will have a big trash can for a lot of the cases.
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There are other reasons.. but the new criteria sucks. The cases HAVE to be lower now... too many easy "outs" for the government health departments to excuse away the cases... and tougher requirements to meet.
posted
It's called Massaging the figures, done on a regular bases here, to manipulate voters.
Used to reduce the look of Unemployment figures. To reduce the look of Hospital waiting lists.
Lyme, is Fibromyalgia, ME, and many other things, ETC, ETC, see I'v reduced the figures already. !!!!!
Posts: 153 | From England | Registered: Jun 2008
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lymielauren28
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 13742
posted
TC thanks for the heads up. There were 0 Lyme cases in Mississippi in 2005 - the year myself and my fifteen year old niece got Lyme - in Mississippi!!! She was even "lucky" enough to get the bullseye rash and test off the charts positive on her western blot!
And yes, her records were sent to the health department...I knew that they didn't report it, but seeing it in black and white...I cannot DESCRIBE the sense of anger and injustice I feel.
I really hope that the b$%^& that runs the show over there,(yes, we've spoken several times ) gets infected with the entire poisonous cocktail of TBI's, and then suffers for years from what we've all suffered from: misdiagnosis, disbelief from friends, family, the medical community, and the very agency she so proudly works for, and the severe pain, suffering and cognitive disfunction that chronic Lyme inflicts.
Thanks again TC, you've re-lit my fire!
Lauren
-------------------- "The only way out is through" Posts: 1434 | From mississippi | Registered: Nov 2007
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lymielauren28
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 13742
posted
Lyme Disease In Dogs, A Serious Matter For Everyone FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 13/01/2006 Veterinary launches website to prevent people and their dogs to catch the lyme disease, and gives information about this painful disease. In the United States , more than 90% of the cases occur in the Northeast, with California and Mississippi second.
Veterinarians know Lyme disease is a big problem in Mississippi. The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries knows Lyme disease is a big problem in Mississippi. When will our Health Department wake up?!
I'll never forget pre-diagnosis going to the ER for what I now know were seizures. I was going over my fifty or so symptoms with the ER doc and telling him everything I'd been tested for previously and all the specialists I'd seen - I could've filled a notebook by then - and he said, "You know, looks to me that you've had a pretty thorough work-up. If they didn't find anything wrong, how am I supposed to? I see about ten people a month with the same bizarre symptoms as you, and most of them never find out what's ailing them..."
Yes! His exact words! Disgusting.
-------------------- "The only way out is through" Posts: 1434 | From mississippi | Registered: Nov 2007
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posted
Scare tactics resulting in doctors refusing to dx Lyme? What sane non-suicidal doctor wants to embark on diagnosing and treating patients for what they know to be Lyme disease when they know too well that it might mean a black mark against their name in several crucial places.
What is it again you have? ABL (Anything But Lyme)!
Nelly
Posts: 416 | From france | Registered: Oct 2001
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posted
I know that in Wisc, I first had my LLMDs office contact me and ask for permission to send the positive test results to the state. Then I got an official letter from the state dept of health, telling me that I was one of several people who were positively confirmed via cdc standards for tracking. All of this, after the standard hmos said I didnt have it.
..Figures lie, and liars figure...
Posts: 514 | From . | Registered: Apr 2008
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AliG
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9734
posted
Maybe the people in CT charged with reporting to the CDC pulled all their hair out & quit?
It would seem that NJ had something to say about the inaccuracies in reporting.
It would seem that once they max out on the number of cases the staff can handle, that's the number reflected in reporting.
If you have 12,000 reports, but only enough staff to confirm 3,000, then your numbers can only reflect 3,000.
What a joke.
-------------------- Note: I'm NOT a medical professional. The information I share is from my own personal research and experience. Please do not construe anything I share as medical advice, which should only be obtained from a licensed medical practitioner. Posts: 4881 | From Middlesex County, NJ | Registered: Jul 2006
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gemofnj
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 15551
posted
Who reports to the CDC that you have lyme. I know I didnt.
Does the testing agency have to report it to the CDC?
Posts: 1127 | From atlantic city, nj | Registered: May 2008
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She joined CDC in 1998 as Director of the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion, NCID, where she developed CDC's patient safety initiatives and other programs to prevent infections, antimicrobial resistance, and medical errors in healthcare settings.
Prior to coming to CDC, Dr. Gerberding was a University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) faculty member and directed the Prevention Epicenter, a multidisciplinary research, training, and clinical service program that focused on preventing infections in patients and their healthcare providers.
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She earned a B.A. magna cum laude in chemistry and biology and an M.D. at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. Dr. Gerberding then completed her internship and residency in internal medicine at UCSF, where she also served as Chief Medical Resident before completing her fellowship in Clinical Pharmacology and Infectious Diseases at UCSF. She earned an M.P.H. degree at the University of California, Berkeley in 1990.
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-------------------- Neil Posts: 697 | From Tucson, AZ USA | Registered: Apr 2002
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bettyg
Unregistered
posted
quote:Originally posted by gemofnj:
Who reports to the CDC that you have lyme. I know I didnt.
Does the testing agency have to report it to the CDC?
when i was diagnosed 4 years ago, it was up to the dr. CLINICALLY DIAGNOSING YOU OR their blood lab to contact your STATE'S HEALTH DEPT., who in turn the numbers into CDC!
i've discovered all states do NOT do this! i do not know how this presently is handled!! *********************************************
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