posted
I spoke to Dr. M's nurse (Bedford) and she talked to me very thoroughly and she seemed very concerned and understanding. She also mentioned I seem to have chronic Lyme also, as most I.D. docs treat early-Lyme.
She mentioned the IV treatments, and that some people do them themselves or while they're doing "other" things. Can anyone shed more light on this for me? I thought I would go to some clinic and have someone monitor me while the treatments are done.
-------------------- Positive Western Blot 9/9/05...undiagnosed. Mostly neurological symptoms...twitches, tremors, myoclonus, parasthesias, muscle and joint pain, brain fog, etc. Posts: 7 | From Arlington, TX (DFW) | Registered: Sep 2005
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arg82
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 161
posted
Usually when people go on IV antibiotic treatment for Lyme they do the infusions themselves at home. Usually a home nursing/infusion company is technically "in charge" of your care and a nurse comes out for the first dose (or you have it done at your doctor's office) to make sure you tolerate it okay. They will teach you how to hook up to the antibiotic, change the tubing on it (each company has a different protocol of how often to change the tubing), etc. A nurse will come out once a week to change the PICC line dressing and can come out if you have any problems between these weekly visits.
How you infuse depends on the company. I have only ever done it via gravity with either an "S hook" (an s shaped hook that makes it possible to hook the bag onto anything that's hookable) or an IV pole. Some other people have done antibiotics with a kind of small disposible pump that you can carry around with you (it's a little ball that has the medicine put right into the ball and then there's some kind of pump mechanism that makes it possible to just put it in your pocket and go about your day). The amount of time it takes to infuse depends on the medicine and the doctor's orders. Rocephin normally takes 20-30 minutes to infuse. Other antibiotics may take different amounts of time.
I hope this helps! You might want to search for "IV antibiotics" or "Rocephin" or "PICC" to find more info in past posts on here. Or feel free to post more questions here!
posted
This is a great question - I am considering going on IV soon and I had 2 questions in this regard:
1. Can they be administret by anything other than a PICC line?
2. Can one actually go to a nurse to administer this thing daily? (despite the inconvenience, I would be scared to do it myself).
Posts: 109 | Registered: Aug 2005
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timaca
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Member # 6911
posted
newdurham77~ IVs can also be administered via a portacath (or maybe it's spelled portocath)...at any rate, it is a device implanted under your skin in your upper chest area. I think if you do a search here, you can find some info on it.
I have a picc line in, and it's easy.
Don't be worried about administering it yourself. It's easy, once you get the hang of it. I would not want to sit in a doctor's office every day while being infused. I'd rather be home eating dinner or working on my computer!
Posts: 2872 | From above 7,000 ft in a pine forest | Registered: Feb 2005
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posted
Jake and Jordan are on IV Primaxin. They (me) infuse 3/day.
Primaxin infuses by gravity. They use an IV pole and it takes about 40 minutes.
When they were on Claforan, Jordan used the intermate system. It looks like a baby bottle with a balloon inside. You can put it in your pocket and do whatever you want.
Jake used a syringe to infuse Claforan. It took 20 minutes.
Their home health nurse comes once a week to change the dressings, draw blood and take their vital signs.
-------------------- Peggy
~ ~ Hope is a powerful medicine. ~ ~ Posts: 2775 | From MN | Registered: Apr 2001
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arg82
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 161
posted
quote:Originally posted by newdurham77: 1. Can they be administret by anything other than a PICC line?
I just posted some info and links about IV lines on this post - picc vs. port
There are essentially five kinds of IV lines (although some are very similar to each other):
1. Peripheral hep-lock - the kind that goes in your wrist, hand, or arm and doesn't get threaded up the vein at all. They can generally last 3 days or a week at the most.
2. Mid-line - get threaded up a vein around the elbow up to about the shoulder. Can stay in for about 4 weeks.
3. PICC line - like the mid-line but gets threaded all the way up to the heart. Can stay in for 3-4 months or longer if there aren't any problems.
4. Central Catheter - goes in the chest and has a tube that comes out through the skin. Can be left in for as long as there aren't problems (a year or more).
5. Port-a-cath - implanted under the skin in the chest and is "accessed" with a special pre-bent needle that can be left in place for a week at a time. When "de-accessed" (i.e. no needle in place) the port is completely under the skin and only requires monthly flushes with saline and heparin to keep it working. Can be left in for years if there are no problems.
posted
That was great Annie,....can this be save in the newbie file?
Stella Marie
-------------------- Stella Marie Posts: 694 | From US | Registered: Apr 2005
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David95928
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 3521
posted
Another drug that has helped many with chronic Lyme is intramuscular Bicillin LA. It's quite effective and may be an alternative to IVs. If you can handle shots, it's convenient and doesn't restict your activities. It's also quite a bit less expensive. Combined with Biaxin, it has given me a new life. If you ever had strep throat and were treated with a shot, that was Bicillin LA. Most peple seem to take it once or twice a week. Surely your doctor will review the various options. Good luck. David
-------------------- Dave Posts: 2034 | From CA | Registered: Jan 2003
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char
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 8315
posted
Hello,
I am looking for information/experience with hep stat lock IV abx treatment.
My daughter has had 2 piccs slip out due to yeast and allergic reaction to occlusive. I have posted incessantly about these piccs. Please forgive the repetitivity here--it's our life!
I am wondering if the temporary hep stat lock would be an option to get some needed IV abx into her while we figure out out to straighten out stomach to get orals in or get portocath. She has made such good progress on IV- hate to delay continuing.
She is 14 and thought up idea herself as she is desensitived to that type of stick.
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