posted
I have been doing some research on this. I worked in health care and never understood cause no one talks about it. (Antibiotic resistant bacteria). If it is discussed it is downplayed and suspected only to affect people with weakened immune systems.
I have inquired if this could be part of my problem and disregarded.
This bring up my question. If lyme became abx resistant due to undertreatment or treatment failures, could the person whom this happened to, pass the abx resistant bacteria to someone else? Of course, the contagious issue is a controversial one, but what if?
Love to hear others thoughts on this and anything others have learned from research, doctors and LLMD's.
Do you think this is why they don't want to treat longterm? Cause they know it is contagious and don't want to deal with it, as abx resistant?
Do people know if they have an abx resistant form of lyme, and that it is not co-infection causeing the symptoms or relapse?
Thanks Lymiecanuck
[This message has been edited by lymiecanuck (edited 06 May 2004).]
posted
It can be abx resistant, case in point, the Lyme vaccine that came out a few years back. They gave it mainly to health workers and most of them got very sick off of the abx resistant strain of Lyme that the vaccine caused. I think it was because they didn't factor in some of the people were already harboring different strains of Lyme before the vaccine.
I wonder if I don't have some sort of resistant Lyme. I haven't had a herx since I have been on abx. I do feel better than before I started the abx. I always thought Lyme was cyclic. I don't know how long the cycles are supposed to last but my symptoms are constant.
Posts: 649 | From United States | Registered: Dec 2003
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lymiecanuck
Unregistered
posted
I myself live in Canada and never recieved a vaccine for lyme. Since doxy is used so often with lyme I would think there is doxy resisanat lyme out there. To me, this makes sense. That doxy should not be treatment of choice.
So the misquitoes are feeding on us lymies on doxy, and animals who feed on abx everyday and many who probably have lyme, there must be alot of abx resistant lyme out there. Most probably to doxy, since it has been used so much.
I could be right off track, who knows. But keeps me wondering cause I was doing much better on biaxin, have switched back so will see what happens. May need more now after using it before.
posted
I think that lyme definitely becomes resistant, if too low a dose of an antibiotic is given. However, there is not as much to worry about here as with a highly contagious disease; with lyme a human is usually a "dead-end host", though I have heard that lyme might be transmissable sexually. Another factor with antibiotic resistance might come up in a rural setting, if ticks are feeding on antibiotic-loaded cattle. This seems like a more likely cause of antibiotic-resistant lyme than human-to- human transmission. DaveS Posts: 4567 | From ithaca, NY, usa | Registered: Nov 2000
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posted
But of course, with individual treatment it is surely important. Maybe this one of the reasons that swithching antibiotics, or treatment with multiple antibiotics, is effective. DS Posts: 4567 | From ithaca, NY, usa | Registered: Nov 2000
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treepatrol
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
Member # 4117
posted
Unless a doctor tells me to stop when Iam herxing I pound my way through it because of what your questioning now. Thats the main reason.
Posts: 10564 | From PA Where the Creeks are Red | Registered: Jun 2003
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Aniek
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 5374
posted
I don't think resistant lyme would be a reason not to give long-term abx. If anything, it would be the opposite.
It would be the use of too short a dose of abx that would cause the lyme to be resistant. One of the reasons many bacteria become resistant is because abx is taken for an infection, but not long enough to kill all the bacteria. Then the bacteria adapts and becomes resistant.
This should be a warning to people who "forget" to take their pills. If you do it too much, you can make the lyme harder to kill.
As far as why so many docs don't support long term treatment with abx, I personally think they are doing what they think is best for the patient.
There are risks to longterm abx use. To take longterm abx that isn't needed, or won't help, is a bad idea. Since so many docs don't understand the full dangers of lyme, they can't weigh the benefits and risks of the long term treatment. They just see the risks.
Posts: 4711 | From Washington, DC | Registered: Mar 2004
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posted
I have had lyme become resistent to doxy, ammox, zithromax, biaxin, tinidazole, flagyl after long term use. I have also devleoped strange reactions to rocpehin and kefzol over long term use which may or may not be allergic reactions.
5 years of long term antiobtics helped a little, but mostly just bought me time. If you have chronic lyme, Id look for another way. Rocpehin has been proven to chase active lyme into cystic form within 48 hours. When the rocpehin is stopped, the cysts hatch, and thus the relapse begins.
All I can say is thank god for rife technology. Im so much better today. There comes a time when you just have to stop playing around and you have to destroy the infection in your body. Payback is a bitch, and it's my joy
posted
This was pretty much what i was getting at in my post " can Lyme mutate?" because i have had years of IV & orals of many different types. At the moment i am pulsing Flagyl & Doxy but what worries me is that as i am still deteriorating, then i must have a high infection load. If i stop one antibiotic to swap for another during this pulsing regime, then surely this gives all the forms a chance to become resistant????
I am currently of my Flagyl weeks & feel very strongly that i am going down hill. I cannot liken this to Herxing because i'm pretty sure of what my own herxes are & i tend to get them a few days into a switch of abx. I also feel that there is confusion as to what should be determined as herxing. For me, it is when i cannot lift my head from my pillow. I have cronic vertigo, blinding menengial headache, have to cover my eyes from all light sorces, chills, shaking, nausea.... etc etc etc. This cannot be compared with my usual naff days which are horrible but at least i can move!
At the moment, i can see myself running out of treatment options.
W.
Posts: 57 | From England | Registered: Jan 2004
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lymiecanuck
Unregistered
posted
I went to hosptial by ambulance last night. completely lost it. Whole body went numb and brain and couldn't stop screaming and thrashing. It was awful. They gave me a medicine by i.v neurogenic and sent me home.
I am going down fast too. Will ask for treatment for bartonella on monday.
posted
++At the moment, i can see myself running out of treatment options.++
I hit that point. It was not fun. Complete relapse. Pretty much tried everything there was. Had to rotate abx every 4 days for any improvement. If you are not getting much, much better afte r onths of high dose abx,consider changing course. I wish I would have much, much sooner.
I would check out the three very powerful rife machines for lyme. They are the b3, mag pulser and the doug coil. I have not tried the doug yet, but I have the other two and they work great.
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