posted
Background: I'm currently seeing a doctor in Florida who put me on I.V. Rocephin. My father is in the medical field and was skeptical of the treatment, as nothing has shown up conclusive on testing.
As a result, my father called some colleagues back in Montreal (McGill U.) and gave them my entire case history. My fathers friend thought the I.V. treatment was absurd, and as a result referred all my info to the head I.D., who is also a researcher/microbiologist (was involved in decoding the genome of C. Diff and is regarded as brilliant by all his colleagues).
After reviewing my case he contacted my fathers friend with his recommendation. (he also had no knowledge of my current I.V treatment)
He said if I was his patient, the first thing he would do is put me on I.V. Rocephin for 12 weeks, then retest for everything, plus west nile and ricketsia (plus another sed rate and c reactive protein). This blew away my dads friend (gastro) who then asked the ID what his reasoning for this was. The ID said that serology's are often negative, and will often convert to positive after a course of treatment. He also said that history and symptoms are as important as test results. All this coming from the head of multiple departments.
Just thought I'd share this with you guys and gals.
Posts: 53 | From tampa | Registered: Mar 2006
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MagicAcorn
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 8786
posted
I always disagreed with the adage that ID doctors were the worst. Both the doctors that have treated me for Lyme have been ID's.
-------------------- Posts: 1279 | From In hiding | Registered: Feb 2006
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dontlikeliver
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 4749
posted
dtiffen,
That's pretty extraordinary!
Has this guy joined ILADS yet? Posts: 2824 | From The Back of Beyond | Registered: Oct 2003
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quote:Originally posted by dontlikeliver: dtiffen,
That's pretty extraordinary!
Has this guy joined ILADS yet?
No. He's not focused on Lyme as the cause of my problems, but he doesn't discount it. Also of note is he told the gastro that new research shows rocephin has action against more organisms than initially thought.
I think this goes to show that it's the guys out on the research front of medicine that know whats going on, where as the guys just practicing go by what they learned in med school and don't adapt.
Posts: 53 | From tampa | Registered: Mar 2006
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shazdancer
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 1436
posted
That's wonderful, dtiffen.
Is this Dr. F**s?
Regards, Shaz
Posts: 1558 | From the Berkshires | Registered: Jul 2001
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treepatrol
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
Member # 4117
posted
At least he's up on the truth.
-------------------- Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Remember Iam not a Doctor Just someone struggling like you with Tick Borne Diseases.
quote:Originally posted by shazdancer: That's wonderful, dtiffen.
Is this Dr. F**s?
Regards, Shaz
no.
here is info on the guy.
Dr. ________, _______ professor, Medicine, Microbiology and Immunology, and Senior Infectious Disease Physician and Microbiologist (______ General Hospital), is an Infectious Disease clinician with special interest in emerging infections, either natural (including avian influenza) or criminally introduced (bioterrorism) agents. Areas include epidemiology, clinical manifestations, detection, treatment, prevention and preparedness.
Posts: 53 | From tampa | Registered: Mar 2006
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posted
Just when you think things are bleakest, a ray of hope.
Posts: 8430 | From Not available | Registered: Oct 2000
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NP40
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6711
posted
quote:Originally posted by lou: Just when you think things are bleakest, a ray of hope.
Hey Lou, here's a few more rays of hope.
I recently ran into an old buddy of mine about a month ago. During our conversation he mentioned that his 14 year old daughter had contracted lyme just like my son. He said the Pediatrician immediately put her on 3 months of IV ! Followed up by another 3 months of orals as her symptoms weren't completely gone !
We even have an ID doc that treats here with long-term abx, PICC's, PORT's, the whole enchilada. Posts: 1632 | From Northern Wisconsin | Registered: Jan 2005
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He has three specialties, Infectious Disease, Internal Medicine and Medical Microbiology.
Posts: 18 | From canada | Registered: Feb 2006
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timaca
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 6911
posted
Yeah for your ID doc!
The ID doc I spoke to said he didn't think I could have lyme for (1) lyme doesn't have a latent phase and (2) lyme gets better without treatment.
He was quite surprised when I handed him my report from Columbia that stated that I most likely had latent lyme that had been activated by a steroid shot. The picc line in my arm was a bit of a shocker for him to.
Timaca
Posts: 2872 | From above 7,000 ft in a pine forest | Registered: Feb 2005
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posted
Thanks, NP40, can use all the rays of hope we can find! Maybe there will be a few states which will serve as refuges for llmds when the imbeciles in CT and elsewhere shut down the best of them.
Q. What kind of country persecutes the docs who know the most about treating emerging infectious diseases?
A. The kind that doesn't care anything about public health.
Posts: 8430 | From Not available | Registered: Oct 2000
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posted
California has more liberal standard of care medical boards than many other states.
However, I think the issue is that states in more epidemic areas are going after the lyme doctors in an indirect way.
I liked what Dr. Jemsen said: [something like] "One day one of these physicians who are so against long term tx will get lyme, or a member of their family will, and they will be coming to me for help."
-------------------- Jeff Posts: 533 | From CA | Registered: Mar 2006
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posted
[QUOTE]Originally posted by timaca: Yeah for your ID doc!
The ID doc I spoke to said he didn't think I could have lyme for (1) lyme doesn't have a latent phase and (2) lyme gets better without treatment.
He was quite surprised when I handed him my report from Columbia that stated that I most likely had latent lyme that had been activated by a steroid shot. The picc line in my arm was a bit of a shocker for him to.
Timaca QUOTE]
yeah, now that I'm thinking of it, my lyme symptoms started to come out of the woodwork a week after my wisdom tooth removal.
I was on amoxicillin for the teeth...but also on oral steroids for 3 days.
The more pieces I put together the more I wish I had left the damn teeth where the were, but TBH, I have been having health issues all year...the Lyme was looking for a reason to come out of its 16 year slumber. Posts: 594 | From NJ/NY | Registered: Jun 2006
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posted
That is hopeful. My experience has shown that we cannot lump all doctors into the duck category...it is individual.
I was referred to the best neuro in Wash D.C. whom I was told does not believe in Chronic Lyme. When he was through with me, he said that he believed that my symptoms were due to my Fibro/Lyme issues.
Also, I just came from a gyno/fertility specialist who was aware that I needed to stay on my abx during pregnancy and was 100% behind the idea.
You have to keep looking...the ducks are out there, but there are docs who really think outside the box sometimes!
Posts: 331 | From virginia | Registered: Nov 2005
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david1097
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 3662
posted
Most ID's DO know the situation very well. It is just that they do not want to be held accountable for "experimental" treatments. Like almost everything else there are a lot of politics with treatment and off the record and on the record responses can be very different.
They simple do not want to be put into the position that the LLMD's are facing, still if it is one of their friends or family I have no doubt what they would do.....
Until the "peer reviewed" junkies get off of their own dope the situation will remain the same.
By the way, last time I looked, most journals have editors or editorial boards... usually well repected in their fields... Does'nt this count as peer review????? I guess it is peer reviewed (by my friends) that they are trying to say....
Posts: 1184 | From north america | Registered: Feb 2003
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My understanding is that this patient should be treated with the rocephin for the 12 weeks as the docotor suggested. Then the patient should wait two weeks and then be retested. The antibiotics challenge the disease and then the disease is allowed time to respond. The test should be done and sent on a Monday or Tuesday to Igenex for results. Further in my reseasrches I have come to the conclusion that no only should the examining physician look at the test results, ie whether the test is positive or negative, he should also look at the pattern of the test and other tests to see if there is a pattern of responses indicating a defective or evaded immune response. In other words he should be looking for that variability in response which is the hallmark of Lyme disease. The doctor is quite correct: one should look at the patient and the patients symptoms and history and then look at the tests. The dumb doctors simply are lazy and stupid and look at the test. which is odd when you think of it. You are using a test of immune response to locate an infection which evades or undermines that immune response. Go figure. Hope this helps. Cheers. Thomas Parkman
-------------------- Thomas Parkman Posts: 341 | From Columbia SC 29206 | Registered: Feb 2003
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