Lyme disease is the fastest growing infectious disease in the United States. The CDC estimates that the number of people infected with Lyme disease surpasses those who acquire HIV/AIDS at the same time. Up to one in ten of those people will not be diagnosed or reported to the CDC due to inaccurate testing, controversies within the medical community and a complacency about this emerging epidemic.
Nobody can agree on what causes a Lyme patient's chronic illness. Many doctors believe patients with Lyme disease can also be infected with multiple "co-infections," causing the immune system to become overwhelmed. There are different stages of Lyme, the late stage being the most severe. In the opinions of some, the hundreds of strains of Lyme are different, resulting in different symptoms and prognosis.
Lyme has been called the new "great imitator," causing every type of symptom imaginable: from symptoms like those of MS, to arthritis, to chronic fatigue, to psychosis. Lyme patients have different levels of ability: some suffer relatively mild concerns, while others are bedbound. The most severely effected patients experience as much pain as post-surgery patients, as much fatigue as those with MS, and have a level of disability equivalent to people with congestive heart failure. Treatment for Lyme causes a "Herx" reaction with patients as the bacteria die off, making patients sicker before their antibiotics begin to work. Some patients are completely healed with a few weeks of antibiotics, and some are chronically ill, maybe for the rest of their lives
Lyme has been called the new "great imitator," causing every type of symptom imaginable: from symptoms like those of MS, to arthritis, to chronic fatigue, to psychosis. Lyme patients have different levels of ability: some suffer relatively mild concerns, while others are bedbound. The most severely effected patients experience as much pain as post-surgery patients, as much fatigue as those with MS, and have a level of disability equivalent to people with congestive heart failure. Treatment for Lyme causes a "Herx" reaction with patients as the bacteria die off, making patients sicker before their antibiotics begin to work. Some patients are completely healed with a few weeks of antibiotics, and some are chronically ill, maybe for the rest of their lives
However, the disease is one of the most political diseases in all of history. In the most visible: debate two organizations, the IDSA and ILADS, have conflicting views on how to diagnose and treat Lyme disease The Infectious Disease Society of America says Lyme is hard to catch and easy to cure, and recommends patients are not treated for more much more than four weeks. They also recommend a two-tiered testing criteria for the disease, even though the tests are notoriously inaccurate. Despite being ordered to revise their guidelines after an investigation by the Connecticut Attorney General revealed financial conflicts of interests, the organization has kept their guidelines the same. Many patients believe this decision has left them ill and without treatment.
The International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society recommends long-term antibiotics and individual treatment plans for different patients. In my opinion, ILADS is at least trying to help people get better, and has had success. There are no sick people standing outside ILADS' offices with signs! But the debate is not limited to these two "sides," and is riddled with complexities. It is unlikely that ILADS or the IDSA have all the answers about the disease. However, the current debate is polarized, angry and unhelpful.
The International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society recommends long-term antibiotics and individual treatment plans for different patients. In my opinion, ILADS is at least trying to help people get better, and has had success. There are no sick people standing outside ILADS' offices with signs! But the debate is not limited to these two "sides," and is riddled with complexities. It is unlikely that ILADS or the IDSA have all the answers about the disease. However, the current debate is polarized, angry and unhelpful.
Over twenty-five years the controversy has become a titanic war, filled with doctors losing their licenses for treating patients, government Bills, patients rights groups, and even people taking advantage of the chaos. It is patients with Lyme disease who suffer most from this: they are discriminated against in the medical community, and in the public at large. Articles have appeared in major papers mocking Lyme patients unlucky enough to have become chronically ill. Dr. Jemsek, a Lyme doctor, speaks on the result in his state: “In the current day, if one compares HIV/AIDS to Lyme Borreliosis Complex patients in issues of: (1) access to care, (2) current level of science, and (3) the levels of acceptance by doctors and the public, patients suffering with advanced Lyme Borreliosis Complex have an inferior quality of life compared to those with HIV/AIDS .”
