posted
Hi. I had a positive antibody test for babesia about eight yeras ago (1997), around the same time I also got lyme. It was never officially treated although I have had my fair share of oral antibiotics over the years.
The symptoms I currently have are that my platelets have been out of whack the whole time (clumping or low), and I also have chronic left side chest/ back pain.
My LLMD suggested that the platelet thing might be due to a still active babesia infection. I think I did have a negative babesia antibody some time ago. My HMO doctor is concerned about me having a low platelet count and wants to send me to hematologist.
Ok, enough background:
Question 1: How would I find out if I still have an active babesia infection at this stage? Is it likely that an antibody test would be positive?
Question 2: What is the current treatment for babesia? Would I need a current positive antibody test to get treated.
Question 3: Any thoughts on chronic left side chest pain. Every doctor I have talked to has blown me off on this, including my LLMD. I did have an echo-cardiogram 2 years ago which was normal.
Thank you very much!
Posts: 19 | From Baltimore, MD | Registered: Nov 2003
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trails
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 1620
posted
Wait, you tested + for Lyme and didnt treat?
Posts: 1950 | From New Mexico | Registered: Sep 2001
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posted
No, I did eventually get treated for lyme with oral antibiotics. And I think I did one bottle of Mepron somewhere along the line.
Posts: 19 | From Baltimore, MD | Registered: Nov 2003
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trails
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 1620
posted
Okay, just checkin.
There is so much more to know about babesia now than 1997.
I too tested pos for it in 2001, and treated lyme but NOT the babs...I did a wimpy thing with artemisin, but it doesnt really count.
One of the very current trains of thought is that Babesia (and other Cos) are what is keeping people from beating Borrelia completely. It is why people are relapsing.
I was told by two LLMDs that you can NOT test false Pos for babs, but you can test false neg. My most recent test for babs was neg, but b/c I had tested pos in the past, and b/c it is assumed that nontreatment for babs is why I got worse after 4 years of no symptoms--we began treatment.
Treatment for babs reallly varies. Please do a search and look for babesia in the subject line. There was even a thread here today about it.
Babesia and Lyme can create crazy insane symptoms, that NO "regular" doc is going to understand or "believe."
Have you been tested by Igenex? Or MDL? Those are the most reputable labs for tick born illness blood testing.
my eyes are realllly hurting, so I gotta get off this thing, but keep posting and asking. This is a good site to get some sound info.
Check out Treepatrol's newbie links at the top of the board...there is a LOT in there about babs.
Also--there are different strains of babs...do you have Wa-1 or the eastern strain?
so much to learn, so little brain left! Trails
Posts: 1950 | From New Mexico | Registered: Sep 2001
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david1097
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 3662
posted
1. Antibody test if positive then it is confirmed, problem is that there are MANY types of babesia, and not all antibodies can be detected. Many people have asymtomaitc babesia.
The gold standard for babesia positive is seeing it on a stained blood smear, but that too is not overly sensistive, Florescent stained smear allows a larger volume of blood to be viewed but it too is not overly sensitive.
In many cases only clinical suspision is used to start treatment.
2. Current treatment.... Depends who you talk to. Front line tick disease experts (LLMD) will use mepron or malarone + an antibiotic. Antibiotics alone will not solve the babesia problem (flagyl might be an execption but this is still in question). -OR- Infectious disease Dr's will go with the text book solution and then kick you out - Quinine + maybe clindimycin, but these have very high drop out rate due to side effects as well as a very high relapse rate. As I said these will ..usually.. treat you them tell you to get lost (ie problem solved ... for them) unless they know what they are doing.
3. Babesia lilley not... Bartonella related, quite possibly yes, Lyme related, quite possibly yes. permanent lyme related damage.... maybe not not too likley. Have you been looked at for bartonella and its nasty cousins...
DO NOT take artinimisin alone.. you might see that artiminisin can be used for babesia and it a herb, but DONT tka eit without mepron or malarone as there is a lot os suspisiion tht it will go resistant... babesia is hard enoughto get rid of (if ever) so you donlt wnat to make things worse.
My $.02 opinion on ths questions.
Hope they are of some help.
Posts: 1184 | From north america | Registered: Feb 2003
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SForsgren
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7686
posted
Thanks. I normally don't even talk about tick issues with my HMO docs. In fact I didn't even mention to them that I had lyme/Babesia in the past. But I was thinking that the the whole platelet thing might be a tiny window to broach the topic. Then again I could be wrong.
Posts: 19 | From Baltimore, MD | Registered: Nov 2003
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JimBoB
Unregistered
posted
I haven't been tested for it, but because of the current thinking on it, I am starting to treat it now.
I am taking doxycyline, artemesia annua, and red root for it, to be added with artemisinin in a few days. 30 to 40 days on this should do it.
bpeck
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 3235
posted
Low RBCs, Anemia, and atypical RBCS (fragments, etc) along with periodic fevers and elevated WBC is a typical blood profile for Babs (and uncomplicated malaria).
If you didn't take a Babs therapy in 1997, then you may still have chronic Babesia. It's not ACUTE Babesia because you'd be in the hospital having red blood cell exchange if it were acute.
The current treatments used in the USA that are FDA approved, in my opinion seems not to work, and cost thousands of dollars. You should look into the malaria treatments used in the 3rd world (b-artemether mixed with abx) of which at least one (Riamet by Novartis) is availble in Europe.
Left side chest pain could be anything... sorry - no ideas on that on. Barb
Posts: 1875 | From VT | Registered: Oct 2002
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