posted
Im sure some of you have seen this, but I just saw it and wanted you to read it. Finally someone is reporting correct information.
Jun 18, 2007 12:10 am US/Central
A Lyme Disease Warning From The CDC (CBS News) NEW YORK To look at Alita Lyons today, and some old photographs of her, you can't tell that she is suffering from a debilitating disease. But she has had Lyme disease for two decades.
"It gave me this terrible insomnia," said Lyons.
Lyme disease is carried by tiny deer ticks. It often goes undetected for years and can be difficult to diagnose.
"I went to, I would say, over 20 doctors, complaining about these symptoms and nobody had a good diagnosis and nobody tested me for Lyme disease until a doctor finally did it in 2003," said Lyons.
And Lyme disease is on the rise, according to the Centers for Disease Control. From over 9,400 cases a year in 1991, the annual reported cases more than doubled to 23,000 by 2005, reports CBS News correspondent Randall Pinkston.
Which begs the question: Is more Lyme disease being spread or are people reporting more cases?
"Well, I think both are true -- the public is definitely more knowledgeable about Lyme disease today than they were in 1991," said Dr. Brian Fallon of the Columbia University Medical Center.
Lyme disease is a bacteria named for the Connecticut town where it was first discovered three decades ago. But it's spread far from there by the ticks, which are carried by deer, mice and even birds.
Lyme disease is concentrated in 10 states, mostly in the Northeast and around the Great Lakes.
Typically, the first symptom is a red bull's eye rash. But sometimes there are no apparent symptoms. If it's not treated early, it can progress into a debilitating condition, as it did with Alita Lyons until she got heavy doses of antibiotics.
"We switched around antibiotics and found one that's really starting to make me feel better," Lyons said recently.
While public awareness is up, the Centers for Disease Control believes Lyme disease is still underreported by more than 200,000 cases a year. Experts want the federal government to provide at least $100 million for research.
-------------------- Love, Merrie Believe in the power of your spirit..for it will carry you through the darkest hours of your life Posts: 261 | From minnesota | Registered: Sep 2004
| IP: Logged |
dmc
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 5102
posted
thanks. i copied this for my email friends.
Posts: 2675 | From ct, usa | Registered: Jan 2004
| IP: Logged |
The Lyme Disease Network is a non-profit organization funded by individual donations. If you would like to support the Network and the LymeNet system of Web services, please send your donations to:
The
Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey 907 Pebble Creek Court,
Pennington,
NJ08534USA http://www.lymenet.org/
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
Printer-friendly view of this topic