Lyme and associated tick-borne diseases: global challenges in the context of a public health threat

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Christian Perronne  c.perronne@rpc.aphp.fr Lyme disease, caused by Borrelia burgdorferi and transmitted by ticks, was initially considered a recent, rare and regional occurrence. We now have evidence that very similar bacteria infected humans in Europe during the ice age (Keller et al.,2012). Evidence-based data are scarce therefore many aspects of the disease remain controversial (Auwaerter et al.,2011; Lee and Vielmeyer, 2011; Perronne,2012),…

KSHB TV Kansas: New tick-borne virus discovered after the death of Kansas man

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December 17th, 2014 KANSAS CITY, Kan. – A new, never before seen virus has been discovered in Kansas. The CDC is now investigating after the tick-borne illness, dubbed “Bourbon Virus,” was linked to the death of a Kansas man. Up until recently, the man’s death remained a mystery. Now, doctors at the University of Kansas…

A possible alternative to antibiotics

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[Canlyme note: Although Borrelia are not known to secrete toxins, this type of research may be beneficial for chemical constituents such as borrelia lipoproteins and lipopolysaccharides.] November 4th, 2014  Published online 02 November 2014 in Nature Biotechnology Engineered liposomes sequester bacterial exotoxins and protect from severe invasive infections in mice   Abstract Gram-positive bacterial pathogens that secrete cytotoxic…

Case of tick paralysis found on Sunshine Coast

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Hikers attempt to save snowshoe hare with engorged ticks Christine Wood/Glacier Media / Squamish Chief [newspaper] November 5, 2014 01:49 PM The first case of tick paralysis ever recorded in a wild animal was identified on the Sunshine Coast recently with the help of the Gibsons Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre. Hikers on a trail near Burnett Road…

Relapsing Fever Group Borrelia in Southern California Rodents

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[CanLyme note: Lyme disease is a borreliosis, caused by many strains/species of Borrelia. Relapsing fever is simply strain related Lyme disease (borreliosis)] Journal of Medical Entomology 51(5):1029-1034. 2014  Nathan C. Nieto and Mike B. Teglas ABSTRACT Wild rodent reservoir host species were surveyed prospectively for infection with Borrelia hermsii, the causative agent of tick-borne relapsing fever in the…

Richard Gunderman, MD – How to Discourage a Doctor

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Not accustomed to visiting hospital executive suites, I took my seat in the waiting room somewhat warily. Seated across from me was a handsome man in a well-tailored three-piece suit, whose thoroughly professional appearance made me – in my rumpled white coat, sheaves of dog-eared paper bulging from both pockets – feel out of place. Within…

Characteristics of seroconversion and implications for diagnosis of post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome: acute and convalescent serology among a prospective cohort of early Lyme disease patients

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[CanLyme note: Here is a quote from the Lyme Disease Research Foundation at John Hopkins University that furthers our long held concerns about the current two-tier testing model in use Canada-wide having very serious limitations as a diagnostic tool, “Characteristics of seroconversion and implications for diagnosis of post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome: acute and convalescent serology…

Boys Mysterious Infection Cured After DNA Sequencing

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[CanLyme note: This is the coming wave for better clinical diagnostics for Lyme borreliosis and other infections] By Maggie Fox NBC TV News Modern genetic sequencing helped doctors diagnose and cure a teen boy’s mysterious infection, offering a glimpse into hospital techniques of the future. A report in the New England Journal of Medicine describes…

Canadian Medical Association endorses Elizabeth May’s Bill C-442, for a National Lyme Disease Strategy

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On Thursday, February 27th, 2014 Elizabeth May’s office received a letter from the Canadian Medical Assocation president, Louis Hugo Francescutti, throwing their support behind Bill C-442. Earlier the College of Family Physicians of Canada had thrown their support behind the Bill as well. The Bill will be up for 1st reading and debate on Monday,…

Lyme Disease Think Tank, British Columbia’s Women’s Hospital Complex Chronic Disease Program, Vancouver, BC Canada

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On April 13th, 2013, a one day Think Tank was held for the medical professionals at the BC Women’s Hospital invloved with the Complex Chronic disease Program headed by Medical Director, Dr. Alison Bested. Here are YouTube presentations of each of the presenters at the symposium; 1) Dr. Alison Bested’s opening remarks including the introduction…

Mother diagnosed with MS and facing life in a wheelchair is cured – after she discovered her symptoms were due to a TICK BITE

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 PUBLISHED 17 June 2013 Julia  Marshall-Wessendorf, 37, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in  2010 An MRI scan  showedlesions on her  brain and spinal cord consistent with MS Was on expensive drug  regime and thought she faced future in a wheelchair Developed other symptoms  inconsistent with MS so did some research Went to doctor and asked …

Chronic or Late Lyme Neuroborreliosis: Present and Future

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Judith Miklossy*, Samuel Donta, Kurt Mueller, Oliver Nolte and George Perry Alzheimer Research Center, Prevention Alzheimer International Foundation, 1921 Martigny-Croix, CP 16, Switzerland This special issue gives a framework of an international effort, to critically and constructively overview the clinical and pathological aspects of Lyme neuroborreliosis and show directions for future practice and research. The…

A Reappraisal of the U.S. Clinical Trials of Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome

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Brian A. Fallon, Eva Petkova, John G. Keilp and Carolyn B. Britton Published Date: (05 October, 2012) Four federally funded randomized placebo-controlled treatment trials of post-treatment Lyme syndrome in the United States have been conducted. Most international treatment guidelines summarize these trials as having shown no acute or sustained benefit to repeated antibiotic therapy. The…