Can you transmit Lyme sexually from husband to wife or wife to husband?
Posted by Cass A (Member # 11134) on :
I recommend you do a search on this topic, as it has been covered before.
Lyme bacteria are in ALL body fluids, according to Buhner in his book "Healing Lyme".
As for transmission by sex, some say yes and some say no.
Best,
Cass A
Posted by Dawnee (Member # 15089) on :
My LLMD says absolutely YES
Posted by sixgoofykids (Member # 11141) on :
My LLMD says no.
They just really don't know.
If my husband were going to get it from me he already would have. I was bitten before we met, and we've been married for 23 years.
Posted by METALLlC BLUE (Member # 6628) on :
My answer is an absolute "I don't know" -- but since I take antibiotics, it's hard to know whether they actually get into my "fluids".
It's one thing to find the bacterium in fluids of the body of a Lyme patient, and another to find them in a Lyme patient on antibiotics.
Posted by HaplyCarlessdave (Member # 413) on :
I strongly suspect that once you've been on abx for awhile you don't have to worry. DaveS
Posted by MusicMan (Member # 11966) on :
Hi there
Well, I look at it this way. We all know how horrible this disease is so I'm not taking any chances.
I don't think anyone knows for sure and they probably never will.
Steve
Posted by blinkie (Member # 14470) on :
I for one think this is how I initially got lyme. I now have an ex boyfriend that has it and my husband as well. Coincidence? I think not.
Spirochettes have been found in semen. You do the math.
Posted by jamescase20 (Member # 14124) on :
YES...and bart even more then sexually, even cat scratch or kiss, ask Dr S
Posted by sometimesdilly (Member # 9982) on :
lots of disagreement among best of the best; not enough solid science to know diddly for sure;
like anything else that is literally life or death, if you are worried about it and have a chance to be proactive, probably better to err on the side of caution rather than recklessness.
Posted by adamm (Member # 11910) on :
Well, it's a lot like the syph, which is...
Posted by Blackstone (Member # 9453) on :
Some LLMDs say yes, some say no.
Sure, Lyme has been found in semen and vaginal fluids, but HIV is also found in sweat and saliva, which has been proven not to be a mode of transmission for the virus.
Lyme shares the physical structure of Syphilis, which is of course sexually transmitted, but also Leptospiriosis, which is not.
Many patients in long term sexual relationships both test positive (exposure, western blot). Some spouses have no symptoms. However, an alternate theory has said that since its SO easy to get bit just by walking outside, something most couples do together, that is why they're both positive.
Some doctors think that if it was truly sexually transmitted at an even HIV-level rate, we'd have a much large epidemic on our hands than we already do.
Anecdote: My longterm partner that I had condom-free sex with for several years prior to diagnosis had, nor has to my knowledge, no negative effects or symptoms.
Posted by Lauralyme (Member # 15021) on :
I agree with the logic of many here that there would be so many more people ill with lyme
But......what if it was transmitted but was just sitting dormant and asymptomatic as the persons strong immune system was able to keep it dormant.
Posted by METALLlC BLUE (Member # 6628) on :
You have to decide whether you'll have unprotected sex, oral sex, as well as pregnancy. If you're willing to take the risk to possibly spread the infection (co-infections too), to your partners, husband, wife, or a future child then that's between you and your partner. Don't forget breastfeeding too, big no-no. Another point of contention I brought up recently was "kissing."
Is kissing an issue? Well, as usual we don't know. You have to make that decision conscientiously with your partner, just like with all of these other choices.
Posted by pamoisondelune (Member # 11846) on :
So we need a STUDY of MICE on ANTIBIOTICS, to see if they transmit! "On abx" is the dilemma situation of many lymies. Marriages could be saved.
Posted by antsettler (Member # 7236) on :
bb is common in mice, they can have transmission ways that with us not be contagious; tabanos also have bb but the transmission is x1000 better with ticks in each bite at the same number of bb; bb need some immunosupressor substances for be contagious; but i think with continuous contact (not only sexual) is transmissible
Posted by Aniek (Member # 5374) on :
As people said, there is no 100% certainty. However, with some of the potential transmission modes mentioned in this thread, it is important to use common sense.
Illnesses that are transmitted through saliva spread incredibly quickly. For example, mono. It spreads like wild fire through college dorms. About 85% of the population is infected with mono by the time they reach adulthood. Lyme infection rates are not that high.
Just because one person says it is transmitted through kissing does not mean it is. I think it's very implausible that it could be with the infection rates (which while high are not 85%).
As far as sexual transmission, I know my LLMD is not concerned. I know couples where both are sick and where only one is sick. Where both are sick, they have usually both been exposed to tick endemic areas.
Posted by METALLlC BLUE (Member # 6628) on :
I agree, kissing transmission is very unlikely in my opinion. Sadly I can't say anything is absolutely certain.
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