posted
I tried searching this but came confused because apparently there's different kinds?
Does anyone know what the symptoms of Bart are? Is there a list somewhere that I can look at?
Since llmd thought Bart was now the issue causing my pain, I thought I'd look into it, as I have never read about it before.
I saw a short list (didn't know if it was about the right kind of Bart, though) and it said brain involvement. Can bart cause neuropathy, twitching, problems with word finding, etc?
-------------------- "~*~My smile hides my bite~*~." Posts: 506 | From N/A | Registered: Jun 2008
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___Joint pain and stiffness (often both Left and Right sides as opposed to Lyme which is often on one side only with pain and stiffness that changes locations)
___Muscle pains especially the calves; may be twitching and cramping also
___Foot pain, more in the morning involving the heels or soles of the feet (sometimes misdiagnosed as plantar fasciitis)
___Nerve irritation symptoms which can be described as burning, vibrating, numb, shooting, etc.
___Tremors and/or muscle twitching
___Heart palpitations and strange chest pains
___Episodes of breathlessness
___Strange rashes recurring on the body often, red stretch marks, and peculiar tender lumps and nodules along the sides of the legs or arms, spider veins
___Gastrointestinal symptoms, abdominal pain and acid reflux
___Shin bone pain and tenderness
Bartonella is a bacterium that causes illness, the most commonly known of which is a disease called "Cat Scratch Fever." Thousands of known cases of Bartonella occur in the U.S. each Year, with the vast majority of known cases due to bites from fleas that infest cats or infected dogs (may also occur directly from bites and scratches from infected dogs or cats). Bartonella can also be transmitted by ticks that transmit Lyme Disease. In fact, in a study published recently, deer ticks from New Jersey had a higher prevalence of Bartonella organisms than of Lyme organisms.
It is unclear whether the organism that we see transmitted along with Lyme disease is actually a Bartonella species (such as B. henselae or B. quintana) or is "Bartonella-Like Organism" (BLO) that is yet to be fully identified. While BLO has features similar to organisms in the Bartonella family, it also has features slimiar to the Mycoplasma and the Francisella (causes tularemia) families.
_________________
Babesiosis
As with other co-infections, there is a lot of overlap of symptoms between Lyme disease and Babesiosis. An accumulation of the following signs and symptoms probably warrant testing and/or treatment of Babesiosis:
___Chills
___Fatigue and often excessive sleepiness
___High fever at onset of illness
___Night sweats that are often drenching and profuse
___Severe muscle pains, especially the large muscles of the legs (quads, buttocks, etc.)
___Neurological symptoms often described as "dizzy, tipsy, and spaciness," similar to a sensation of "floating" or "walking off the top of a mountain onto a cloud"
___Depression
___Episodes of breathlessness, "air hunger", and/or cough
___Decreased appetite and/or nausea
___Spleen and/or liver enlargement
___Abnormal labs (low white blood count, low platelet counts, mild elevation of liver enzymes, and elevated sed rate)
___Headaches (migraine-like, persistent, and especially involving the back of the head and upper neck areas)
___Joint pain (more common with Lyme and Bartonella)
___anxiety/panic (more common with Bartonella)
___Lymph gland swelling (more common with Bartonella and Lyme)
Posts: 503 | From Maryland | Registered: Oct 2007
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posted
Breakdown of Co-Infection symptoms per Dr. B.
/Short list:/
*/Borrelia/* *(Borreliosis, neuroborreliosis; also known as Lyme Disease)* /Spread primarily though the bite of infected ticks that live on a wide range of mammalian species; secondary human-to-human transmission through semen, breast milk, and possibly in utero/
Bladder dysfunction Burning or stabbing sensations Cardiac impairment Change in bowel function Chest pain Confusion Depression Difficulty thinking Difficulty with concentration and reading Difficulty with speech, writing Difficulty finding words; name blocking Disorientation: getting lost, going to wrong places Disturbed sleep: too much, too little, fractionated, early awakening Ears/Hearing: buzzing, ringing, ear pain, sound sensitivity Exaggerated symptoms or worse hangover from alcohol Eyes/Vision: double, blurry, increased floaters, light sensitivity Facial paralysis (Bell's palsy) Fatigue, tiredness, poor stamina Forgetfulness Headache Heart block Heart murmur Heart palpitations Heart valve prolapse Increased motion sickness Irritability Irritable bladder Joint pain or swelling Lightheadedness Mood swings Muscle pain or cramps Neck creaks & cracks Neck stiffness, pain Numbness Pelvic pain Poor attention Poor balance Poor short-term memory Problem absorbing new information Pulse skips Rib soreness Sexual dysfunction or loss of libido Shooting pains Shortness of breath; cough Skin hypersensitivity Sore throat Stiffness of the joints or back Swollen glands Testicular pain Tingling Tremor Twitching of the face or other muscles Unavoidable need to sit or lay down Unexplained breast pain Unexplained fevers, sweats, chills or flushing Unexplained hair loss Unexplained menstrual irregularity' Unexplained milk production Unexplained weight loss or gain Upset Stomach or abdominal pain Vertigo Wooziness
*/Babesia/* *(Babesiosis)* Babesia is a protozoan spread by ticks, blood transfusion, and in utero. Despite there being 13 known forms to date, current testing only looks for two of them.
Air hunger Cough Fatigue Fevers Headache Hemolysis Imbalance without true vertigo Mild encephalopathy Shaking chills Sweats
*/Bartonella/* *(Bartonellosis, also known as cat scratch fever)* /Spread by bites from infected ticks and in utero/
BRAIN: Encephalopathy may occur 1-6 weeks after the initial infection and is fairly common in patients with Bartonella. Note: Approximately 50 percent of patients who develop Encephalopathy can be affected by seizures (from focal to generalized, and from brief and self-limited to status epilepticus). Headaches, Cognitive Dysfunction, and CNS Lesions may be evident.
RASH AND LYMPHADENITIS: Erythematous papules (red splotches or slightly raised red spots) may develop. Such papules occasionally occur on the lower limbs but are more common on the upper limbs, the head, and neck. The papules may appear on the skin or mucous membranes. Bartonella may also cause subcutaneous nodules, with some bone involvement possible. The nodules may show some hyperpigmentation, be tender, fester, and/or be enlarged or swollen, but not always.
EYES: Conjunctivitis, Bartonella Neuroretinitis, Loss of Vision, Flame Shaped Hemorrhages, Branch Retinal Artery Occlusion with Vision Loss, Cotton Wool Exudates, Parinaud's Oculoglandular Syndrome, and Papilledema. BONES AND MUSCLES: Osteomyelitis, Myositis, Osteolytic Lesions (softening of bone), Myelitis, Radiculitis, Transverse Myelitis, Arthritis, Chronic Demyelinating Polyneuropathy.
HEART: Endocarditis, Cardiomegaly. Possible lab findings: The following may show up during standard testing: Thrombocytopenia, pancytopenia, anemia, elevated serum alkaline phosphatase level, elevated bilirubin, abnormal liver enzymes. X-ray of the bone may show areas of lysis or poorly-defined areas of cortical destruction with periosteal reaction. Cardiomegaly may show up on a chest X-Ray.
Biopsies of lymph nodes reveal pathology often indistinguishable from sarcoidosis. Reports of biopsies strongly suggestive of lymphoma do occur. Tests occasionally show an enlarged liver with multiple hypodense areas scattered throughout the parenchyma.
Posts: 503 | From Maryland | Registered: Oct 2007
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posted
Bart seems a lot like Lyme. I have lots of Bart symptoms too. Maybe once I attack the Bart I will feel better. I have Zithromax and Rifampin (sp?) to start after I get done with i.v.
Has anyone been on that combo and was it successful?
Thanks for the listing of Bart symptoms. At least I have another reason to have swollen lymph nodes! I hate worrying about that.
-------------------- "~*~My smile hides my bite~*~." Posts: 506 | From N/A | Registered: Jun 2008
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posted
by those symptoms, I have bart, lyme, and babs.
Who knows if I really do. I was just tested for babs and re-tested for lyme. no testing for bart. I am being treated with cipro I think just because she's treating the bart.
posted
So wait if my cat were to have Bart and scratched me I can get it that way?
Don't mean to sound stupid just wow'd by that.
Thanks for information!
-------------------- When the going gets tough. . . I'll keep fighting! Ms. Geet3721
New LLMD, New abx, New life coming right up!!!! Posts: 714 | From La La Lyme Land | Registered: Jun 2008
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Tracy9
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7521
posted
I get a little confused by the leg pain I get. Sometimes I'm fine when I do things, other times I get horrible pain that day and the next few when I do some housework, exercise, etc.
Today is a prime example. The soles of my feet are burning and stinging, my calves are achey and have almost a restless yet sore feeling, my shins hurt, achey and sharp pain, and my thighs all around are achey with that same restless achey feeling.
My question is, are these from the Bart, which I have (and tested positive for) but has not yet been treated at all?
Or are they just from overdoing it? And most importantly, could overdoing it, or just doing some stairs, housework, lifting, etc, set these Bartonella symptoms off?
I was just going to post this but thought I'd just tack it on here instead since we are talking about the same subject.
As always, Thank YOU Fuzzy for all the wonderful information!
Also, my hubby was treated for Bart for about 2 months with minocycline and Rifampin, this was about four months ago. Now his symptoms are recurring,after having abated. So it doesn't appear that two months of treatment was enough!
13 years Lyme & Co.; Small Fiber Neuropathy; Myasthenia Gravis, Adrenal Insufficiency. On chemo for 2 1/2 years as experimental treatment for MG. Posts: 4480 | From Northeastern Connecticut | Registered: Jun 2005
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I am Zithromax Rifampin and Doxy for Bartonella and Lyme. I have like seriously every symptom there is! This is week 4 for me... it has attacked a lot of my symptoms so far. But i am not even close to being 100% better... but i can tell a difference already. I can tell that this combination of medications is working well for me. Hopefully it will for you as well
Posts: 52 | From Owings Mills MD | Registered: Aug 2008
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seekhelp
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 15067
posted
I never can tell either...I have symptoms of Bart, Babs, and Lyme. We probably all do to some degree as I can't see how you wouldn't with the high overlap. It's strange how they overlap, but the LLMD can definitely say which ones you have. Maybe it's a % thing.;
Posts: 7545 | From The 5th Dimension - The Twilight Zone | Registered: Mar 2008
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quote:Originally posted by Tracy9: The soles of my feet are burning and stinging, my calves are achey and have almost a restless yet sore feeling, my shins hurt, achey and sharp pain, and my thighs all around are achey with that same restless achey feeling.
My question is, are these from the Bart, which I have (and tested positive for) but has not yet been treated at all?
Well, I certainly have all those symptoms. I had them consistently before I started treatment. Now I'd say they are intermittent throughout any given week. I've been diagnosed with Lyme/Babs/Bart/Mycoplasma/also had Ehrlichia.
Tracy, according to the two LLMD's that I've seen, the symptoms you describe are Bart. That's what they've told me was causing my symptoms just as you described above.
And overdoing things can definitely make symptoms emerge or can exacerbate them.
Again, according to what I've been told by doctors and what I've read, two months of Bart treatment is generally not enough when it co-exists with any of the other infections.
It's a nasty co-infection. And, put together with the other infections, it makes for a recipe of one rather miserably-sick person.
Fuzzy
Posts: 503 | From Maryland | Registered: Oct 2007
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quote:Originally posted by Geet3721: So wait if my cat were to have Bart and scratched me I can get it that way?
Geet, yes, that's what they say. I don't think that means, though, that each time one is scratched by a cat they will contract Bartonella. I don't know what the percentage of risk is.
You could try reading some of those medical articles posted in the "Bartonella Information Thread." I've forgotten whether they mention percentages of risk transmission via cat scratches.
Bart can also be transmitted from dog to human via dog saliva.
Fuzzy
Posts: 503 | From Maryland | Registered: Oct 2007
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Fuzzy
Posts: 503 | From Maryland | Registered: Oct 2007
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Tracy9
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 7521
posted
Thanks Fuzzy, I appreciate your response. Bet you're thinking twice now about being inspired by my closet cleaning spree!!! See the repercussions we have to face????
I know I definitely have Bart, twice positive on Quest and have the symptoms; just haven't been treated for it yet. LLD tried me on Levaquin but I experienced pretty bad tendon issues, so had to stop. Haven't seen LLD since then.
13 years Lyme & Co.; Small Fiber Neuropathy; Myasthenia Gravis, Adrenal Insufficiency. On chemo for 2 1/2 years as experimental treatment for MG. Posts: 4480 | From Northeastern Connecticut | Registered: Jun 2005
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richedie
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 14689
posted
The foot pain can be all day, not just morning! I don't know what is causing my foot pain, Bb, Babs or Bart but my feet no longer like to have any pressure such as shoes. Walking barefoot feels best, shoes hurt and walking can hurt. I used to have sore sols as soon as I woke up but that has gotten better. My feet still are sore and hurt through the day though and cn get much worse after a walk, even tingly/numb feeling. Sometimes the entire foot can ache.
-------------------- Mepron/Zith/Ceftin Doxy/Biaxin/Flagyl pulse. Artemisinin with Doxy/Biaxin. Period of Levaquin and Ceftin. Then Levaquin, Bactrim and Biaxin. Bactrim/Augmentin/Rifampin. Mepron/Biaxin/Artemisinin/Cat's Claw Rifampin/Bactrim/Alinia Plaquenil/Biaxin Posts: 1949 | From Pennsylvania | Registered: Feb 2008
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posted
Has anyone here struggled with vein problems? Black looking veins...stretch marks.
Posts: 136 | From Arizona | Registered: Sep 2008
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Angelica
Unregistered
posted
I have an excess of blue veins. No black ones yet.
I read at this forum that 40% of the cats in Calif. have bartonella.
The neighbor's teenage cat is sunning on my deck as I type. It likes to try and bite your leg for the sheer joy of it. She kind of gets a barty twinkle in her eye right before she lunges.
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That is too funny about the cat. I grew up in the Southeast and have been bit by everything. I think I will get well, but I am suprised I am not sicker. There are different types of Bartonella, but most affect the vascular system.
Posts: 136 | From Arizona | Registered: Sep 2008
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The neighbor's teenage cat is sunning on my deck as I type. It likes to try and bite your leg for the sheer joy of it. She kind of gets a barty twinkle in her eye right before she lunges.
HAHA That cracked me up especially the twinkle in her eye!!!
Thanks for the laugh!
-------------------- When the going gets tough. . . I'll keep fighting! Ms. Geet3721
New LLMD, New abx, New life coming right up!!!! Posts: 714 | From La La Lyme Land | Registered: Jun 2008
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mojo
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9309
posted
I am a dog person.
My poor neighbor was scratched big time by her huge Mantauk cat and she was put on ABX and got a couple stitches. I was relieved to know she was put on ABX but I don't know what kind or strength. She already has "Fibromyalgia"
I am actually afraid of cats. Sounds dumb, I know.
Posts: 1761 | From USA | Registered: May 2006
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Angelica
Unregistered
posted
We are in the market for a new LL Feline Psychiatrist after Puma Cat took a bite out of the last one.
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And, put together with the other infections, it makes for a recipe of one rather miserably-sick person. 
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