My LLMD said she'd treat my 17 month old with about 3 months of amoxicillin if his Lyme test came back positive. I read in "The Lyme Disease Solution" that amoxicillin MUST be paired with another antibiotic that targets the L shape.
What are some safe antibiotics for toddlers? He's not talking yet, so it's hard to know what his symptoms are, but he appears to be healthy, although extra fussy sometimes and a bad sleeper.
Edited to add: If he has Lyme disease, it would be congenital Lyme, so not early localized.
Posted by bettyg (Member # 6147) on :
Dr. Burrascano's most recent "Diagnostic Hints and Treatment Guidelines for Lyme and Other Tick Borne Illnesses" @
suggests that you discuss with your doctor continuing treatment until you are symptom free for 2 months
p.17: Antibiotic Choices & Doses From CBB:
Amoxicillin-Children: 50 mg/kg/day divided into q8h doses.
CBB's pharmacist did the math for me, & it means: 35 lb child - 800 mg per day 70 lb child - 1,600 mg per day [1 kg=2.2046 lbs]
p.19: Treatment Categories Early Localized - single erythema migrans rash with no constitutional symptoms.
Children: oral therapy for 6+ weeks.
This still doesn't seem to address the Cyst form though.
Posted by swedish lyme sufferer (Member # 14579) on :
I think it is possible to give Flagyl in liquid form. Zith hits L-form. Flagyl hits cysts.
My kids have taken Flagyl liquid no probl.
Posted by tickbattler (Member # 14873) on :
Dr. J in CT has started my 2 year old on azithromycin. She has no problem taking it.
Her only symptoms were itching scalp and stomach and crankiness after naps. She also started to wake up several times per night crying. She was sometimes irritable during the day.
She is on her second month of azith, and this has all improved. She seems normal and happy now!
Good luck to you,
tickbattler
Posted by Shosty (Member # 12232) on :
I don't understand why you would want your toddler on not one, but two, powerful meds, when the child is not having symptoms. And the other child described here is not having symptoms that would warrant this, either.
I think that this type of prescribing is what brought Dr. Jones under scrutiny, and parents need to realize how potent amox., zithro, and flagyl are, and how much damage to immune function and GI function and who knows what else, can occur.
Why was the poster's child even tested for Lyme? Because the mom has it? Is the poster worried about passing it on, and taking precautionary measures?
I would be grateful for a healthy child, and deal with things if the tests are positive, or if problems come up later, which they will not necessarily do. I know there are people here who will disagree, but those are my feelings.
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
Do a search on congenital Lyme in infants, toddlers and small children.
It would be difficult to accurately ascertain symptoms
Especially if your baby isn't talking yet.
First words should appear by one year of age.
Eighteen months would still be "normal" but really on the fringe of delayed.
I am a Speech Therapist.
My son (congenital Lyme) spoke on time, but was very, very late in walking.
That was one of the symptoms of
Congenital Lyme (delayed acquisition of developmental milestones).
Children stand a good chance of completely overcoming Lyme with proper treatment.
It is your child. Tests aren't accurate.
It is a difficult situation.
Please keep us posted on test results.
I think looking at a list of symptoms seen in very young children will help.
I was amazed to see how many my children had.
Things my pediatrician said were perfectly "normal". Not!!!!!!
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by bettyg (Member # 6147) on :
i think this is what geneal is talking about and will copy here since i just gave it to someone else!
From ``GENEAL'' June 2007
I have been doing some research regarding Lyme and signs/symptoms in small children.
I know many of you have small children that you may be concerned about. I believe my youngest child (4yrs old) may have gotten this disease from me.
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, joing pain in 50% to 100% -myalgias in over 80%, back ache, morning stiffness, pain at rest, muscle weakness
-frequent illnessses, 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 infection *hypersensitivity 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 *Obsessive compulsive disorders *Deterioration in school performance in over 90% *Difficulty with concentration and attention in school with easily distractibility 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-spaticity, 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
- Modd swings, sudden emotional outbursts - Irritabiity - 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 URI's, ear and throat infections, bronchitis, pneumonia
Congenital Lyme Disease
* Infants can be infected with Borrelia transpacentally in any stage of pregnancy and/or via mother's breast milk.
* The co-infections: Babesia, Bartonella, Mycoplasma and perhaps even the Ehrilichias can be transmitted transpacentally to the developing fetus.
* Gestational Borreliosis can be associated with repeated miscarriages, fetal death in utero, still births, hydrocephalus, cardiovascual anomalies,
intrauterine growth retardation, neonatal respiratory distress, and maternal toxemia of pregnancy.
* Infants either infected congenitally 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 - Gastro esophageal reflux - Developmental delays -Learning disabilities and psychiatric problems
* Infants bitten very early in life will have many of the same symptoms - loss and decline in developmental milestones.
I found this to be a pretty inclusive list of signs/symptoms for small children, infants, and those suspected of congenital Lyme.
Sadly, my two children do exhibit many of these symptoms and both have positive bands for Lyme via Igenex diagnostic lab in PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA.
**********************************************
Posted by jenny317 (Member # 18023) on :
I'm totally sympathtic to this situation. My daughter is 3 1/2 and certainly exhibits some of these symptoms, but a lot of these may seem normal or can be attributed to other things. She does have a lot of skin issues. I believe that I got lyme in 2000 and she was born in 2005. I didn't figure out that this is what I had until last year and I've been to tons of different doctors in Indiana and haven't been able to get help beyond 3 weeks of oral doxy, and I had a positive IgM western blot.
So, I still haven't seen an LLMD myself, but I hope to get her tested and treated if she tests positive. My big fear is that if we wait until she has lots of symptoms it will be even harder to treat. By that point she'll be in elem. school and treatment would be that much more difficult. If there is a chance of treating her with oral antibiotics now that would be much better than IV antibiotics several years from now.
Plus, as a parent who may have unwittingly inflicted this terrible disease on her child, I just want this to go away. I feel terrible guilt at not having sought treatment when I had the rash (I didn't think it could be lyme because I hadn't seen the tick, plus living in Indiana I wasn't that familiar with it).
Having had a little girl before I knew that I had this is the worst nightmare of my life. All that I did during pregnancy to keep her safe (no caffeine, prenatal vitamins etc.) and I may have given this to her? It is simply unbearable.
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