posted
I'm wondering what symptoms I should be looking for in children? Is it the same as adults? I'm most concerned about my baby. I'll soon find out my blood work, which will lead us towards testing the baby if I have this, but I'm wondering what I should be looking for in him?
I was pregnant when I got the tick bite, so if I do have Lyme Disease, then it happened while I was pregnant with my son. He is now almost 18 months old.
Posts: 256 | From Texas | Registered: Jun 2010
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Geneal
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 10375
posted
Here is a list of possible indicators that I compiled over 3 years ago.
That was when I was researching for my children.
They were both diagnosed and treated successfully.
For All Children
- dizziness - neck pain and stiffness in almost 90% - sore throats - swollen lymph nodes - excessive thirst - Chest pains in at least 70%...some have palpatations - Sense of air hunger or shortness of breath, dry cough
- abdominal pain in about 50%...can mimic acute appendicitis - sometimes vomiting, heartburn - rashes that come and go, malar rashes, new psoriasis
- migratory arthralgias, joint pain in 50-100% - myalgias in over 80%, back ache, morning stiffness, pain at rest, muscle weakness
- frequent illnesses, dark circles under their eyes - intermittent red, hot pinnae of ears - sleep disturbance in over 80%
- Neurological symptoms are protean and can appear AT ANY TIME during the course of the infection * hypersensisivity of skin, scalp and hair * hypersensitivity to noise, light, smell * Alterations of taste * poor balance and coordination * Uncharacteristic behavior outbursts, mood disturbances, depression * social withdrawal * new onset phobias * oppositional behaviors * Obessive compulsive disorders * Difficulty with concentration and attention in school with easy distrability as well as "brain fog" in over 80% * New onset of ADD
* When measured with formal neuropsychiatric testing, children demonstrate defects in auditory and visual sequential processing.
Less Commonly:
* movement disorders-spacticity, ataxia, motor or vocal tics * Cranial neuropathies, e.g. Bell's Palsy or optic nerve neuritis * Peripheral neuropathies-numbness and tingling, distal parathesias, subtle weakness
Pre-Schoolers and Toddlers
- Mood swings, sudden emotional outbursts - Irritability - Personality changes - Regression of motor and social skills (developmental milestones) - Changes in play behavior, tire easily, less active
- Trouble falling asleep, frequent awakenings -Nightmares, new phobias, recurrence of seperation anxiety - Diaper rash, unresponsive to normal treatment - Frequent UTI's, ear and throat infections, bronchitis, pneumonia
Congenital Lyme Disease
* Infants can be infected with Borrelia transplacentally in any stage or pregnancy and/or via mother's breast milk
* The co-infections: Babesia, Bartonella, Mycoplasma and perhaps even the Ehrillichias can be transmitted transplacentally to the developing fetus
* Gestational Borreliosis can be associated with repeated miscarriages, fetal death in utero, still births, hydrocephalus, cardiovacular anomalies, intrauterine growth retardations, neonatal respiratory distress and maternal toxemia of pregnance.
* Infants either infected congentially or from breast milk can have
- Floppiness with poor muscle tone - Irritability - Frequent fevers and illness early in life - Joint sensitivities and body pain - Skin sensitivity - Gasto esophageal reflux - Developmental delays - Learning disabilities and psychiatric problems
If this turns out to be Lyme, then the past 7 months of testing for things and having them come back negative will be all worth it.
Because if they would have hit on the Pit Gland and diagnosed me and began treating me, I know I would have left it at that, thinking that was all it was.
And if I do, indeed, have Lyme, then that would have allowed this to progress even further and I would have not known about it to check my baby out either.
If it turns out the way it's looking now, then I'll be thankful for this diagnosis and hopeful that I'll be one of the 80% that recover.
How long has it been since you and your kids were diagnosed? Has the recovery been going well?
Posts: 256 | From Texas | Registered: Jun 2010
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Hoosiers51
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 15759
posted
I would test and possibly treat as soon as possible. The earlier the treatment, the better. Not saying your child does need treatment, but if he/she does, the earlier the better.
If you have reason to suspect it (like if your child shows symptoms), I would treat, because treatment before a certain age is thought to be much more effective than later on in childhood. I want to say it was age 4 or 5. Sorry, just can't remember.
Check out this special edition of a magazine called Lyme Times, all about children. It will tell you what symptoms to look for in children, but if I remember correctly, not babies. Still might be worth checking out though.
And also, for the testing, I would be sure it's the Igenex Western Blots, IgM at least. I think babies can "inherit" the IgG antibodies from their mother, without necessarily having the disease....but I am not sure at what point those antibodies from the mother would fade. You would need to ask an immunologist if you wanted to know.
Anyways, I would go on symptoms, not what the test results say, when deciding to treat.
Good luck!
Posts: 4590 | From Midwest | Registered: Jun 2008
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