I'm on it. I don't have my labs back yet but i've been on it a week and have significant improvement. The doctor said today that it was interesting I was improving. I don't know what he meant by that. Do you think that means I probably have lyme? Or based on your experience what do you think? I guess I'm just impatient and cant wait till my next appointment in 2 weeks to find out.
anyways i live in los angeles and i distinctively remember hiking with some friends and we sat on this wood thing and it had a whole lot of tiny black ticks on it. The more I look into it I really think they were nymph black legged ticks. so im not sure if i got sick in another country a year earlier or i got sick then...
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7 months ago
11 comments:
Hi!
Ok--that could mean one of two things, most ppl who actually have Lyme get very sick 4-5 days after beginning an antibiotic, this is called the Herxheimer reaction, it is the realeasing of the toxins from the system. During this time you have symptom OVERLOAD- everything hurts worse, and sometimes you run a fever (I know I do) But, you do not need to herx to have lyme, your dosage may not be high enough to Herx.
If you are improving, that could also be an indicator that you have some kind of Bacterological infection going on- and that is the response you would have from an antibiotic..
They add zithro because it is a macrolide, meaning it
prevents the bacteria from making proteins in its cell wall. It is called a
bacteriostatic antiobiotic because it paralyzes the bug from making the
proteins it needs.
I think that Zithro works better with a bacteriocidal (bacteria-killing) antibiotic (Ceftriaxone)because it has a better chance of getting rid of the bacteria. It's kind of a one two punch deal.
Do you understand or I am way ahead of you here? Sorry ...Ive had lyme a long time, and do a lot of research...you can repost if you want me to explain it differently...
Feel better!
What type of tests is your doctor running (what lab(s)???
Oral Azithromycin? I wouldn't worry, but ask for a Western Blot test, if they haven't already.
That'll tell you if you have Lyme. (Not always, Dormant Lyme doesn't usually show on a Western)
Okay labs, stupid me. Don't worry until you get your labs back, then at worst you probably haven't had it for more than two years, so you've caught it relatively early.
Zithromax is a very common drug, it treats everything from Lyme to Strep, so I wouldn't be really freaked.
If it was a nymph blackie, then I would also suggest (if you are very worried) asking to be tested for both Bartenela, and Babesia, as they are also transferred via tick. The symptoms are similar, but you'll want to be sure, so you can kill off whatever is bothering you.
I hope everything goes well!
While Zithromax did very well in the Lab, it DID NOT do very well in clinical trials on actual patients without the addition of other antibiotics....
Courtney---get tested at Igenex...if it was several years ago, regular Labs arent going to detect anything in you! You will be told you dont have it, but you might. Igenex is the BEST tick specialty lab that there is at the moment.
Heres what you need to get from Igenex:
Lyme Western Blot (ALL BANDS) this separates out proteins antigens of an organism you are looking for. It tells you if a person has been exposed. It is not a direct measurement of the organism. It is a measurement of whether the person has antibodies to it.
IF IT IS NEGATIVE--- get a PCR:
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing detects the genetic material (DNA) of the Lyme disease bacteria. PCR testing may be useful for identifying a current (active) infection if you have arthritis that does not improve with antibiotic treatment. PCR testing is not done as frequently as antibody testing because it requires technical skill and expensive equipment. The PCR test is specific and sensitive. There are not as many false results with the PCR test.
OR A LUAT, URINE TEST
Urine Antigen Test (LUAT)
is a newer antibody test that is being used more frequently by Lyme physicians. At this time the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved the LUAT test for use in the clinical diagnosis of Lyme disease.
FOR CO-INFECTIONS- GET TESTED FOR THEM ALL!
THE best test for Babesiosis is the FISH test
Fluorescent In-Situ Hybridization (FISH)- The FISH assay is performed on thin blood smears and detects the ribosomal RNA of Babesia (thereby indicating active infection).For the FISH test a small blood smear is put onto a glass slide. Thats slide is than looked at under a special microscope with a flourescent light, this test needs to be done by a professional micobiologist, and they need to sit there and watch the blood smear sometimes for hours. If they see little black specks in the red blood cells thats is how they diagnose babesiosis
And you can get a PCR for ehrichliosis I believe, and blood smears for all the rest....
This way you are as sure as you can be....
Hope this is helpful
yeah he's testing for some diseases i could have gotten in ethiopia and lyme and other things associated with that. he did a full blood panel and said everything was fine. he also said that if he didnt find anything on the regular testing he would reccomend sending it into igenix? but my insurance won't pay for that so he wants to wait with the regular one.
i'm on 250 mg once a day.
250 once a day isn't enough. That i what I am taking.. but I am on a MASSIVE dose of IV antibiotics with it! Its not enough at all....
When I was treated for Babesiosis the protocal was Mepron and Zithromax. Mepron 1/2Tsp, and Zithromax 500 in AM, 500PM!!! THAT was for Babesiosis though...
ANY lab besides IGENEX I think is Junk...They DONT report all of the BANDS!!! They exclude bands 31,and 34 and those are Lyme specific bands too. You need Igenex. Its $1,000 for a decent workup.
Its the best money you will ever spend if it gives you the answers you need.
uggh!!! thats sooo frustrating! I'm trying to pay for a wedding in two weeks and can barely pay that! and i don't get financial aid in the summer so thats 3000 we have to save up for rent!!!! i hate this! and i cant work.
sorry just stressed out, can't sleep and thinking of all the money i spent today alone on wedding stuff.
AHHH! OH im sory. Luckily I have my parents to pay for everything. Do you have parents/relatives that would pay for the Igenex tests bc its for the betterment of your health and all?
Umm...the only other thing I can suggest, is that sometimes there are some Lyme doctors who treat based on symptoms and not positive tests- OR they will treat based on a test that only showed one band positive (requirement by CDC is 5!) .....
OR- you might get a positive test from like Labcorp or Quest..im assuming thats the kind of lab you sent to.
Stonybrook lab in NY is covered by most insurances, and they are NOT IGENEX GOOD...but better than quest and labcorp and others....
YOU WILL however, need positive bloodwork to get ANY of your medicines paid for by insurance- and they are EXPENSIVE.
I've used zithro in the past, along with just about every other anitbiotic on the market. I'm not sure what your doctor meant what he said it was interesting you were improving, but have you ever heard of something called the Jarosch-Herxheimer reaction? It's known as a herx for short. Basically with Lyme when you have a large dieoff of bacteria they can break into smaller pieces and release neurotoxins, making you feel much worse before you get better. Some people have a massive herx with they first start treatment for Lyme, other don't. Some people do improve significantly when they first start taking antibiotics. Also, how much is your doctor relying on lab results to determine whether or not this is Lyme? The blood tests for Lyme are very inaccurate and should NOT be used as the sole diagnostic test. I've been dealing with Lyme for a long time (infected for 16 years, on treatment for the past 7) so feel free to send me a PM if you have anything you want to know. Good luck with everything!
Courtney,
I think that your doctor's suprise was due to the fact that there is no one specific antibiotic that kills off the parasites. I had to alternate between 3 different antibiotic before I was better.
I am glad that you are better after the 1st meds.
Hi! My brother and I are both on Zithromax. My brother is pretty much symptom-free since he's been on it. Your doctor probably said that it was interesting because for a lot of people it takes a long time to feel better. It's a good thing.
I hope you keep on feeling better! Good luck! :D
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