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Posted by Nessa1815 (Member # 15697) on :
 
I tried searching this but came confused because apparently there's different kinds?

Does anyone know what the symptoms of Bart are? Is there a list somewhere that I can look at?

Since llmd thought Bart was now the issue causing my pain, I thought I'd look into it, as I have never read about it before.

I saw a short list (didn't know if it was about the right kind of Bart, though) and it said brain involvement. Can bart cause neuropathy, twitching, problems with word finding, etc?
 

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Posted by FuzzySlippers (Member # 13658) on :
 
There is a Bartonella Information Thread that I'll bump to the top of the Forum to see if it might help.

Meanwhile, here are a couple of more things. First is a symptom questionnaire with Babesia and Bartonella that I got from my LLMD.

After that I will post a breakdown of symptoms by co-infection by Dr. B.

Fuzzy


Bartonellosis

Common symptoms of bartonellosis include:

___Fatigue (often with agitation, unlike Lyme disease, which is more exhaustion)

___Low grade fevers, especially morning and/or late afternoon, often associated with feelings of "coming down with the flu or a virus"

___Sweats, often morning or late afternoon (sometimes at night) - often described as "thick" or "sticky" in nature

___Headaches, especially frontal (often confused with sinus) or on top of head

___Eye symptoms including episodes of blurred vision, red eyes, dry eyes

___Ringing in the ears (tinnitus) and sometimes hearing problems (decreased or even increased sensitivity - so-called hyperacusis)

___Sore throats (recurring)

___Swollen glands, especially neck and under arms

___Anxiety and worry attacks; others perceive as "very anxious"

___Episodes of confusion and disorientation that are usually transient (and very scary); often can be seizure-like in nature

___Poor sleep (especially difficulty falling asleep); poor sleep quality

___Joint pain and stiffness (often both Left and Right sides as opposed to Lyme which is often on one side only with pain and stiffness that changes locations)

___Muscle pains especially the calves; may be twitching and cramping also

___Foot pain, more in the morning involving the heels or soles of the feet (sometimes misdiagnosed as plantar fasciitis)

___Nerve irritation symptoms which can be described as burning, vibrating, numb, shooting, etc.

___Tremors and/or muscle twitching

___Heart palpitations and strange chest pains

___Episodes of breathlessness

___Strange rashes recurring on the body often, red stretch marks, and peculiar tender lumps and nodules along the sides of the legs or arms, spider veins

___Gastrointestinal symptoms, abdominal pain and acid reflux

___Shin bone pain and tenderness

Bartonella is a bacterium that causes illness, the most commonly known of which is a disease called "Cat Scratch Fever." Thousands of known cases of Bartonella occur in the U.S. each Year, with the vast majority of known cases due to bites from fleas that infest cats or infected dogs (may also occur directly from bites and scratches from infected dogs or cats). Bartonella can also be transmitted by ticks that transmit Lyme Disease. In fact, in a study published recently, deer ticks from New Jersey had a higher prevalence of Bartonella organisms than of Lyme organisms.

It is unclear whether the organism that we see transmitted along with Lyme disease is actually a Bartonella species (such as B. henselae or B. quintana) or is "Bartonella-Like Organism" (BLO) that is yet to be fully identified. While BLO has features similar to organisms in the Bartonella family, it also has features slimiar to the Mycoplasma and the Francisella (causes tularemia) families.

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Babesiosis

As with other co-infections, there is a lot of overlap of symptoms between Lyme disease and Babesiosis. An accumulation of the following signs and symptoms probably warrant testing and/or treatment of Babesiosis:

___Chills

___Fatigue and often excessive sleepiness

___High fever at onset of illness

___Night sweats that are often drenching and profuse

___Severe muscle pains, especially the large muscles of the legs (quads, buttocks, etc.)

___Neurological symptoms often described as "dizzy, tipsy, and spaciness," similar to a sensation of "floating" or "walking off the top of a mountain onto a cloud"

___Depression

___Episodes of breathlessness, "air hunger", and/or cough

___Decreased appetite and/or nausea

___Spleen and/or liver enlargement

___Abnormal labs (low white blood count, low platelet counts, mild elevation of liver enzymes, and elevated sed rate)

___Headaches (migraine-like, persistent, and especially involving the back of the head and upper neck areas)

___Joint pain (more common with Lyme and Bartonella)

___anxiety/panic (more common with Bartonella)

___Lymph gland swelling (more common with Bartonella and Lyme)
 

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Posted by FuzzySlippers (Member # 13658) on :
 
Breakdown of Co-Infection symptoms per Dr. B.


/Short list:/

*/Borrelia/*
*(Borreliosis, neuroborreliosis; also known as Lyme Disease)*
/Spread primarily though the bite of infected ticks that live on a wide range of mammalian species; secondary human-to-human transmission through semen, breast milk, and possibly in utero/

Bladder dysfunction
Burning or stabbing sensations
Cardiac impairment
Change in bowel function
Chest pain
Confusion
Depression
Difficulty thinking
Difficulty with concentration and reading
Difficulty with speech, writing
Difficulty finding words; name blocking
Disorientation: getting lost, going to wrong places
Disturbed sleep: too much, too little, fractionated, early awakening
Ears/Hearing: buzzing, ringing, ear pain, sound sensitivity
Exaggerated symptoms or worse hangover from alcohol
Eyes/Vision: double, blurry, increased floaters, light sensitivity
Facial paralysis (Bell's palsy)
Fatigue, tiredness, poor stamina
Forgetfulness
Headache
Heart block
Heart murmur
Heart palpitations
Heart valve prolapse
Increased motion sickness
Irritability
Irritable bladder
Joint pain or swelling
Lightheadedness
Mood swings
Muscle pain or cramps
Neck creaks & cracks
Neck stiffness, pain
Numbness
Pelvic pain
Poor attention
Poor balance
Poor short-term memory
Problem absorbing new information
Pulse skips
Rib soreness
Sexual dysfunction or loss of libido
Shooting pains
Shortness of breath; cough
Skin hypersensitivity
Sore throat
Stiffness of the joints or back
Swollen glands
Testicular pain
Tingling
Tremor
Twitching of the face or other muscles
Unavoidable need to sit or lay down
Unexplained breast pain
Unexplained fevers, sweats, chills or flushing
Unexplained hair loss
Unexplained menstrual irregularity'
Unexplained milk production
Unexplained weight loss or gain
Upset Stomach or abdominal pain
Vertigo
Wooziness


*/Babesia/*
*(Babesiosis)*
Babesia is a protozoan spread by ticks, blood transfusion, and in utero. Despite there being 13 known forms to date, current testing only looks for two of them.

Air hunger
Cough
Fatigue
Fevers
Headache
Hemolysis
Imbalance without true vertigo
Mild encephalopathy
Shaking chills
Sweats


*/Bartonella/*
*(Bartonellosis, also known as cat scratch fever)*
/Spread by bites from infected ticks and in utero/

abnormal liver enzymes
encephalopathy
endocarditis
flu-like malaise
headache
hemolysis with anemia
hepatomegaly
high fever
immune deficiency
jaundice
lymphadenopathy
myalgias
myocarditis
papular or angiomatous rash
somnolence
sore throat
splenomegaly
weakened immune response


*/Ehrlichia/*
*(Ehrlichiosis)*
/Bites from infected ticks/

elevated liver enzymes
headaches
myalgias
ongoing fatigue
persistent leukopenia
thrombocytopenia
 

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Posted by FuzzySlippers (Member # 13658) on :
 
Here's another one as well.


BARTONELLA SYMPTOMS

GENERAL: Fatigue, Restlessness, Combative behavior, Myalgias, Malaise, Liver and/or Spleen
involvement, Abdominal pain, Infectious Mononucleosis-like Syndrome, Granulomatous Hepatitis

BRAIN: Encephalopathy may occur 1-6 weeks after the initial infection and is fairly common in patients
with Bartonella. Note: Approximately 50 percent of patients who develop Encephalopathy can be affected
by seizures (from focal to generalized, and from brief and self-limited to status epilepticus). Headaches,
Cognitive Dysfunction, and CNS Lesions may be evident.

RASH AND LYMPHADENITIS: Erythematous papules (red splotches or slightly raised red spots) may
develop. Such papules occasionally occur on the lower limbs but are more common on the upper limbs, the
head, and neck. The papules may appear on the skin or mucous membranes. Bartonella may also cause
subcutaneous nodules, with some bone involvement possible. The nodules may show some
hyperpigmentation, be tender, fester, and/or be enlarged or swollen, but not always.

EYES: Conjunctivitis, Bartonella Neuroretinitis, Loss of Vision, Flame Shaped Hemorrhages, Branch
Retinal Artery Occlusion with Vision Loss, Cotton Wool Exudates, Parinaud's Oculoglandular Syndrome,
and Papilledema.
BONES AND MUSCLES: Osteomyelitis, Myositis, Osteolytic Lesions (softening of bone), Myelitis,
Radiculitis, Transverse Myelitis, Arthritis, Chronic Demyelinating Polyneuropathy.

HEART: Endocarditis, Cardiomegaly.
Possible lab findings: The following may show up during standard testing:
Thrombocytopenia, pancytopenia, anemia, elevated serum alkaline phosphatase level, elevated bilirubin, abnormal liver enzymes.
X-ray of the bone may show areas of lysis or poorly-defined areas of cortical destruction with periosteal
reaction. Cardiomegaly may show up on a chest X-Ray.

Biopsies of lymph nodes reveal pathology often indistinguishable from sarcoidosis. Reports of biopsies
strongly suggestive of lymphoma do occur.
Tests occasionally show an enlarged liver with multiple hypodense areas scattered throughout the
parenchyma.
 

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Posted by Nessa1815 (Member # 15697) on :
 
Bart seems a lot like Lyme. I have lots of Bart symptoms too. Maybe once I attack the Bart I will feel better. I have Zithromax and Rifampin (sp?) to start after I get done with i.v.

Has anyone been on that combo and was it successful?

Thanks for the listing of Bart symptoms. At least I have another reason to have swollen lymph nodes! I hate worrying about that.
 

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Posted by Clint31 (Member # 16420) on :
 
by those symptoms, I have bart, lyme, and babs.

Who knows if I really do. I was just tested for babs and re-tested for lyme. no testing for bart. I am being treated with cipro I think just because she's treating the bart.
 

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Posted by Geet3721 (Member # 15751) on :
 
So wait if my cat were to have Bart and scratched me I can get it that way?


Don't mean to sound stupid just wow'd by that.


Thanks for information!
 

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Posted by Tracy9 (Member # 7521) on :
 
I get a little confused by the leg pain I get. Sometimes I'm fine when I do things, other times I get horrible pain that day and the next few when I do some housework, exercise, etc.

Today is a prime example. The soles of my feet are burning and stinging, my calves are achey and have almost a restless yet sore feeling, my shins hurt, achey and sharp pain, and my thighs all around are achey with that same restless achey feeling.

My question is, are these from the Bart, which I have (and tested positive for) but has not yet been treated at all?

Or are they just from overdoing it? And most importantly, could overdoing it, or just doing some stairs, housework, lifting, etc, set these Bartonella symptoms off?

I was just going to post this but thought I'd just tack it on here instead since we are talking about the same subject.

As always, Thank YOU Fuzzy for all the wonderful information!

Also, my hubby was treated for Bart for about 2 months with minocycline and Rifampin, this was about four months ago. Now his symptoms are recurring,after having abated. So it doesn't appear that two months of treatment was enough!
 

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Posted by katiegirl625 (Member # 16776) on :
 
I am Zithromax Rifampin and Doxy for Bartonella and Lyme. I have like seriously every symptom there is! This is week 4 for me... it has attacked a lot of my symptoms so far. But i am not even close to being 100% better... but i can tell a difference already. I can tell that this combination of medications is working well for me. Hopefully it will for you as well
 

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Posted by seekhelp (Member # 15067) on :
 
I never can tell either...I have symptoms of Bart, Babs, and Lyme. We probably all do to some degree as I can't see how you wouldn't with the high overlap. It's strange how they overlap, but the LLMD can definitely say which ones you have. Maybe it's a % thing.;
 

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Posted by FuzzySlippers (Member # 13658) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by Tracy9:
The soles of my feet are burning and stinging, my calves are achey and have almost a restless yet sore feeling, my shins hurt, achey and sharp pain, and my thighs all around are achey with that same restless achey feeling.

My question is, are these from the Bart, which I have (and tested positive for) but has not yet been treated at all?

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Well, I certainly have all those symptoms. I had them consistently before I started treatment. Now I'd say they are intermittent throughout any given week. I've been diagnosed with Lyme/Babs/Bart/Mycoplasma/also had Ehrlichia.

Tracy, according to the two LLMD's that I've seen, the symptoms you describe are Bart. That's what they've told me was causing my symptoms just as you described above.

And overdoing things can definitely make symptoms emerge or can exacerbate them.

Again, according to what I've been told by doctors and what I've read, two months of Bart treatment is generally not enough when it co-exists with any of the other infections.

It's a nasty co-infection. And, put together with the other infections, it makes for a recipe of one rather miserably-sick person.

Fuzzy
 

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Posted by FuzzySlippers (Member # 13658) on :
 

quote:

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Originally posted by Geet3721:
So wait if my cat were to have Bart and scratched me I can get it that way?

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quote:

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Originally posted by Angelica:


The neighbor's teenage cat is sunning on my deck as I type. It likes to try and bite your leg for the sheer joy of it. She kind of gets a barty twinkle in her eye right before she lunges.

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