Been told that one can have a positive lyme test due to candida or yeast infection because the outer protein coat of both are similar.
Also informed that if one has lyme, neutrophils would go up and lymphocytes down, but a fungal infection would have the oopposite effect.
Never heard these things before-anyone else?
Best to everyone!
Posted by Wimenin (Member # 15294) on :
Told by who?...llmd?...neuro?...pcp?
Which test?...elisa a/b?...WB?...etc?
Its possible to have both lyme and yeast...see it all the time during lyme treatment. Its also possible to have lyme and not yeast, and yeast but not lyme.
For med treatment, one is abx, and one is antifungal. Again, often they go hand in hand in treatment as in taking both during lyme treatment.
But Ive never heard of a positive lyme test due to yeast (Candida), unless they have both.
Anyone else care to comment?
Posted by Keebler (Member # 12673) on :
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Ask for a copy of that test to be sent to you for your file.
Get to an ILADS-member LLMD.
Most doctors (even specialists) know nothing about lyme or other TBD (tick-borne diseases). And many doctors follow the IDSA thought process which is severely damaging to patients.
(Terms will be defined in articles to follow below.)
Did you every have a rash after a tick bite? Any rash any where, not just at the tick bite site - or if a bulls-eye rash, that would be certain to be lyme.
If you do have candida, you can treat that now. As it may take a while to get in to an LLMD, the Singleton book and Burrascano's guidelines (below) are the two best guides for self care and what you can do in the meantime.
Zhang or Buhner are to the two best if you have to wait too long to see a LLMD. But, first as your prospective LLMD what they suggest as you wait and if suggestions from either of those books would be okay.
You might also see if you have an LL NDs in your area. (ND is a naturopathic doctor). However, you would also need that LL ND to be an ILADS member.
CONTROVERSY CONTINUES TO FUEL THE "LYME WAR" -(author's details at link)
As two medical societies battle over its diagnosis and treatment, Lyme disease remains a frequently missed illness. Here is how to spot and treat it.
Excerpts:
Meet the players
The opponents in the battle over the diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease are the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), the largest national organization of general infectious disease specialists, (and)
and the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS), an organization made up of physicians from many specialties. ( www.ilads.org )
ILADS, by contrast, asserts that the illness is much more common than reported, underdiagnosed, easier to contract than previously believed, difficult to diagnose through commercial blood tests, and difficult to treat, (especially)
especially when treatment is delayed because of commonly encountered diagnostic difficulties ( http://www.ilads.org/guidelines.html - Accessed April 6, 2007).
. . .
" . . .To treat Lyme disease for a comparable number of life cycles, treatment would need to last 30 weeks. . . ."
`` . . .Patients with Lyme disease almost always have negative results on standard blood screening tests and have no remarkable findings on physical exam, so they are frequently referred to mental-health professionals for evaluation.
"...If all cases were detected and treated in the early stages of Lyme disease, the debate over the diagnosis and treatment of late-stage disease would not be an issue, and devastating rheumatologic, neurologic, and cardiac complications could be avoided..."
. . . * Clinicians do not realize that the CDC has gone on record as saying the commercial Lyme tests are designed for epidemiologic rather than diagnostic purposes, and a diagnosis should be based on clinical presentation rather than serologic results.
- Full article at link above, containing MUCH more detailed information.
-===
Co-infections (other tick-borne infections or TBD - tick-borne disease) are not discussed in the Savely article due to space limits. Still, any LLMD you would see would know how to assess/treat if others are present.
May 2008 Volume 39 Number 5 LABMEDICINE www.labmedicine.com - American Society for Clinical Pathology
CHRONIC BACTERIAL AND VIRAL INFECTIONS IN NEURODEGENERATIVE AND NEUROBEHAVIORAL DISEASES
- by Garth Nicolson, Ph.D.
===========================
AFTER reading the articles above this will make more sense and, sadly, shows the state of treatment (and - with the new committee gathered, it is still a horrible situation for there are no real experts on the new panel):
Attorney General Richard Blumenthal today announced that his antitrust investigation has uncovered serious flaws in the Infectious Diseases Society of America's (IDSA) process for writing its 2006 Lyme disease guidelines and the IDSA has agreed to reassess them with the assistance of an outside arbiter.
You should also be evaluated for coinfections. Not all tests are great in that regard, either, but a good LLMD can evaluate you and then guide you in testing. One of the top labs is:
There are a couple other good labs for certain tests: Fry; Clognen; Focus. Your LLMD will know. Some say MDL does good work (but I don't know if they test all the bands).
The International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) provides a forum for health science professionals to share their wealth of knowledge regarding the management of Lyme and associated diseases.
- In the menu to the left of their home page, you can order DVDs of past ILADS seminars. You might also be able to borrow some from your local lyme support group.
This are invaluable to understanding how these infections work. And, none of this is taught in medical schools. None.
Who told you about the neutrophils vs lymphocytes?
My neutrophils have always been high.
Ive never heard of Candida cross reacting with the lyme WB either.
Posted by Tonglen (Member # 18472) on :
Thx for the comments everyone.
The statements came from a PhD biochemist who does blood work analysis and works with patients that have "difficult" conditions including lyme. The lyme tests referred to were the ELISA and Western Blot.