I read somewhere that some llmds are using Flagyl and ketek for babs is this true? Just wandering if this has worked for anyone or if Mepron always has to be used as well! Thanks, Robin in Houston
Posted by liz28 (Member # 4946) on :
Robin, this is copied from another post.
There's actually quite a few more drug combinations used now for babesia, although flagyl is useless for it, and ketek is only a partial treatment. My hardcore babesia is finally calming down after four years of no treatment (and complete disability), and one and a half years of partial treatment. I took plaquenil, flagyl and zithromax continuously for two years, and they did nothing but create drug-resistant babesia. Although flagyl is spectacular for Lyme, despite its many side effects.
If I had the whole experience to do over, I'd have tried chloroquine-doxycycline-primaquine-artemisinin first, then gone for the mepron. Chloroquine is marketed under two names, Nivaquine and Avloclor. It is not the same drug as plaquenil (hydroxychloroquine). The reason I'm interested in this combination, is that it is one of the most widely prescribed cures for relapsing malaria, and is far more targeted, and less expensive, than mepron. Mepron is an excellent, life-saving drug, but if you read through Lymenet, you'll see it has a high relapse rate. You always take it with an antibiotic from the macrolide family, such as ketek or zithromax, to slow down the development of drug resistance to mepron.
As it is, I did a terrific combination, in my personal non-medical non-authoritative easily changed opinion, provided your liver can handle it, of mepron-ketek-primaquine-artemisinin. I took mepron-ketek-artemisinin for one year, and recovered to the point of contemplating training for a marathon, working 60 hours a week, and being symptom-free. Then the whole thing collapsed when I stopped taking mepron, and the bug became so aggressive that mepron could no longer hold it back.
I'm now into my eighth week of mepron-ketek-primaquine-artemisinin, with the primaquine pulsed at three days on, two days off. When I first started, my babesia had finally overcome mepron, and I was experiencing constant fever, seizures, memory loss, and severe sleep disturbance. This week, I'm finally able to take breaks from mepron--although it's too soon to know if this is permanent yet--I'm jogging again, and can go to sleep with just melatonin supplements, not two ambien tablets. That has not been possible for the past five years. The artemisinin is still required, but the ketek has been cut back from two 400mg tablets per day to one tablet per day.
I absolutely agree with Crime of Lyme that quinine is one of the most powerful, effective malaria drugs available, and it would have been the next step after mepron. But since it has well-documented side effects (just look at all those old novels about Western travelers who visit Africa and take quinine), you would definitely want to research it first, so you know what you're doing.
Most of these drugs are notorious for turning your liver into chopped liver unless you take protective supplements. The best liver supports are milk thistle, schizandra, and N-acetyl cysteine. Some other terrific ones are zinc, selenium, phosphatidylcholine/lecithin, CoQ10, alpha lipoic acid, magnesium, and beta carotene.
You can get Nutricology's artemisinin supplements off the web. One way people learn if they have babesia is to take artemisinin and see if their symptoms flare.
Posted by surg (Member # 6937) on :
I think some docs are using flagyl and zith for babesia.
Posted by Dave6002 (Member # 9064) on :
quote:One way people learn if they have babesia is to take artemisinin and see if their symptoms flare.
Hi, Liz,
I have read several messages about using Arte. to test if one has Babs.
But never understand how to do this.
Could you explain more?
Thanks.
Posted by Aniek (Member # 5374) on :
I did Ketek, Artemsinin and Plaquenil for babs. I was on the plaquenil already so it wasn't added. I started Plaquenil with Biaxin, but it reduced inflammation and pain in my hands so I stayed on it.
It seems to have been a succesful combination for me. But I really didn't have a bad case of babs.
Posted by dontlikeliver (Member # 4749) on :
Liz,
You mentioned a while back that you had early kidney disease or damage from Mepron. Can you elaborate?
I ask because my GFR came back at 67 and now I am having it investigated to see what the cause is.
How did you come to conclusion that any kidney damage is caused by Mepron?
Posted by Dave6002 (Member # 9064) on :