SPECIAL ISSUE:
PATIENT ISSUE
Patient Special Issue

Tick-Borne Co-Infections Answers to the most commonly-asked questions

By Doug Fearn
    • QWhat are these “co-infections” and “associated diseases”?
    • AThe ticks that carry the Lyme bacteria also often carry microorganisms that cause other diseases. The most common “co-infections” are anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, babesiosis, bartonellosis, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, bartonellosis, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever may be cured by some of the same antibiotics that are prescribed for Lyme disease. But babesiosis is a different type of disease, caused by a blood parasite and not a bacterium. Antibiotics alone are not effective against babesiosis.New organisms are being discovered in ticks all the time. Their role in human illness is not yet known.Few doctors are familiar with these diseases. They may fail to recognize the symptoms or test for these diseases, so many people are suffering from untreated infections. The lab tests for these coinfections have many of the same problems as LD tests. Often, it is this combination of diseases that makes the patient so mystifyingly ill and unresponsive to treatment.

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4 Reader Comments

  1. I saw thirty doctors before getting the diagnosis of chronic Lyme disease. I felt vulnerable and humiliated with the doctors not believing me about being exhausted all the time and in a lot of pain they said it was fibromyalgia and stress. They prescribed Tylenol so l drank vodka as the Tylenol did not help. I hope doctors will be made to study the disease and are alert to the symptoms. So patients may be treated immediately

  2. Can’t find anyone to test for tick borne anything. I remember when I was 16, going to California from Wisconsin before my senior year of high school, in 1971. Was sick during the trip and my dad was on my case the whole time because he said I was faking it. Never took me to a doctor. The next year I was out of school a lot for what the doctors said was “Mono”. I have had surgery for spinal fusion C-1 thru C-3 January 2014. Now I have chronic pain and a skin condition(which I have had for years) that no one can explain. When I had surgery for a severed tendon in my hand, I was told they would not put me out as I had scar tissue on my lungs. I was tested and was positive for Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. That was probably 1986. No explanation.Today I have neurological issues. I lived on a Wisconsin Dairy farm for years where I came in contact with wood ticks. I remember picking off 13 at one time.

  3. Can someone advise as to correct testing for possible Lyme ongoing for years? Thank you. My daughter sounds like she has Lyme but no insurance so testing will be on our own but need advise.

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