Re: OT more tick info

emjaycem@xxxxxxxxx wrote:
It's not a trivial issue. The trick is to find the right doctor. I
will admit that a few LD specialists overdiagnose it but that's
outweighed by far by regular doctors who underdiagnose it.

But on what evidence do you base your knowledge of overdiagnosis? It
seems like one of those things that "everyone knows," but which turns
out to be based largely on opinion. I don't think Lyme is
overdiagnosed more than, say, fibromyalgia, cfs, or any number of
mental disorders. Perhaps diagnosis itself is over-used.

Because there is not yet reliable testing, particularly in late-stage
LD, Lyme has to be a clinical diagnosis. This view is supported by the
CDC and is clearly stated on every western blot. Until we have better
testing, I simply cannot blame any physician for diagnosing Lyme in the
absense of another verifiable explanation for persistent multi-system
issues, especially if the patient lives in, or visits, Lyme-endemic
areas.

The LDA met with and made recommendations to CDC Director, Dr. Julie
Gerberding last week. Some points covered - dropping the ELISA (which
misses more than half of serologically-confirmed LD cases), restoring
the arbitrarily-dropped bands to the western blot, making it more
sensitive and Lyme-specific, and clarifying the CDC stance on clinical
diagnosis. Although the CDC does support clinical diagnosis, the CDC
reporting guidelines (which were not intended for diagnosis) are often
used to rule out LD, and deny insurance coverage and treatment.

I believe these issues were put to the CDC several years ago, and were
dismissed. So we'll see how it goes. I am lucky to be able to afford
my treatment. Others don't fare as well.

Nancy DeMarco
Mason, NH

.

Relevant Pages

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