Bob Cowart's Blog

Congressmen Call For Removal of Outdated IDSA Guidelines from National Guideline Clearinghouse

2012-01-23T14:26:00.001-08:00

LYMEPOLICYWONK update from Lymedisease.org

On January 17, 2012, Congressmen Smith, Wolf, and Gibson called on the National Guidelines Clearinghouse (NGC) to remove the IDSA's outdated Lyme guidelines. We applaud them! But, this, of course, is the middle of the story not the beginning, so let's go back.

In early September, LymeDisease.org asked the IDSA whether it was in the process of reviewing its outdated guidelines. The IDSA merely referred us to their website, which said its guidelines were current and refused to provide any further information. We then contacted the NGC who told us they planned to continue listing the 2006 IDSA guidelines until 2015. We have been working behind the scenes with Lyme disease groups, including Time for Lyme, the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society, the national Lyme Disease Association, and other patient groups and individuals, including David Roth...

See rest of article here:

http://www.lymedisease.org/news/lymepolicywonk/898.html

New Study about Acupuncture for PD

2012-01-20T14:31:00.001-08:00

Acupuncture Today profiles Kluger's MJFF-funded study in the upcoming February edition, already available online. There is still much to be learned about how alternative medicine might provide viable options for those living with PD. But Kluger says that already he has seen some dramatic improvements in some of the study's participants. "People have gone back to doing activities that they haven't done in years," he told the magazine.

I've been doing acupuncture for my PD, too, here in Berkeley. It's too early to report back as to whether it has done anything for me.

US FDA Fails to Outlaw Amalgams

2012-01-17T09:40:00.001-08:00

After enormous public pressure from scientists, dentists, health professionals, and consumers, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) promised to make an announcement about dental amalgam by the end of 2011.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2012/01/17/fda-action-on-dental-amalgam.aspx?e_cid=20120117_DNL_art_1

Personal video update 1-11-2012

2012-01-11T11:37:00.001-08:00

Here's the latest video update on my condition:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDQT2hxutD0

Exercise & Parkinson's Disease

2012-01-09T14:23:00.001-08:00

This article from the Washington Post says extreme exercise is good for PD. The issue I have is that my Lyme docs warn against aerobic exercise for Lyme. What could help with one disease can exacerbate the other. This is a conundrum for me.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/bicycling-and-other-exercise-may-help-people-with-parkinsons-curb-their-symptoms/2011/12/10/gIQAnWT1lP_story.html

Lyme docs recommend exercise that is non-aerobic, such as weight lifting. Some suggest jumping on a small trampoline in order to stimulate the lymph system and therefore aid in detoxification. When I exercise hard (aerobically), I feel pretty lousy for the next day or two. This is a typical Lyme reaction. I guess I'll just have to keep experimenting.

Curing Lyme Disease with Samento (Cat's Claw)

2012-01-03T14:56:00.001-08:00

An older article but it contains some interesting claims and references about the connection between Lyme and other neurological disorders such as PD and ALS. It also claims Samento may be more effective than antibiotics in Lyme treatment.

By Dr. James Howenstine, MD.
April 17, 2005

NewsWithViews.com
Lyme Disease was initially regarded as an uncommon illness caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb). The disease transmission was thought to be solely by the bite from a tick infected with this spirochete. The Bb spirochete is able to burrow into tendons, muscle cells, ligaments, and directly into organs. A classic bulls-eye rash is often visible in the early stage of the illness. Later in the illness the disease can afflict the heart, nervous system, joints and other organs. It is now realized that the disease can mimic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis, Bell's Palsy, reflex sympathetic dystrophy, neuritis, psychiatric illnesses such as schizophrenia, chronic fatigue, heart failure, angina, irregular heart rhythms, fibromyalgia, dermatitis, autoimmune diseases such as scleroderma and lupus, eye inflammatory reactions, sudden deafness, SIDS, ADD and hyperactivity, chronic pain and many other conditions.

Dr. Paul Fink, past president of the American Psychiatric Association, has acknowledged that Lyme Disease can mimic every psychiatric disorder in the Diagnostic Symptoms Manual IV. This includes attention deficit disorder (ADD), antisocial personality, panic attacks, anorexia nervosa, autism and Ausperger's syndrome etc. It might be prudent in any person suddenly found to have psychiatric symptoms to obtain a Q-RIBb blood test to exclude Lyme Disease.

Read entire article here:
http://www.newswithviews.com/Howenstine/james26.htm

Chiropractors and Naturopaths - Are They Dangerous?

2011-12-30T10:02:00.001-08:00

Good article on Dr Mercola's site about alternative medical practice being challenged by the AMA.
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/12/30/rethinking-medical-associations-best-interests.aspx?e_cid=20111230_DNL_art_1

Stem Cells for Parkinson's

2011-12-26T12:35:00.000-08:00

Stem Cells For Parkinson's

http://video.foxnews.com/v/1347464715001/stem-cell-transplant-offers-hope-for-autism-parkinsons/?playlist_id=87485

Innovative Viral Strategy to Treat Parkinson's Disease

2011-12-21T14:24:00.001-08:00

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-12/rup-ins121411.php

TED TALK on Non-Invasive Surgery with Ultrasound for PD

2011-12-20T12:33:00.001-08:00

This is an amazing talk and slide show at TED Med about a new means of treating Parkinson's disease.

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/yoav_medan_ultrasound_surgery_healing_without_cuts.html

Parkinson's and Presticides - New Research

2011-12-20T11:58:00.001-08:00

Here's a pretty in-depth article about farming with pesticides and the effects it has on farm workers and others (such as neighbors) who are exposed to those pesticides.

http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/201201/parkinsons-pesticides.aspx

A Vaccine for Parkinson's?

2011-12-19T11:13:00.001-08:00

Here's a podcast about a potential vaccine for Parkinson's Disease:

http://blog.michaeljfox.org/2011/12/podcast-a-clinical-study-of-a-pd-vaccine/

Inhaled Levadopa Undergoing Trials

2011-12-16T00:17:00.001-08:00

http://blog.michaeljfox.org/2011/11/civitas-therapeutics-announces-mjff-grant-to-study-lead-drug-candidate-for-parkinsons-disease/

Bonnie Bassler: The Secret, Social Lives of Bacteria

2011-12-13T12:43:00.001-08:00

A very interesting TED talk about how bacteria talk to each other, and what the next wave of antibiotics might be based on.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVfmUfr8VPA

TED Video about Coinfections and Antibiotics

2011-12-12T13:21:00.001-08:00

A TED video of Bonnie Bassler's articulate explanation of why coinfections are so difficult to eradicate with antibiotics:

http://www.lymediseaseresource.com/wordpress/the-magic-key-to-destroy-virulent-bacteria-without-antibiotics/

Financial Support for Lyme Medications

2011-12-12T13:19:00.001-08:00

TOUCHED BY LYME: A program that can help you pay for Lyme treatment. Prescription Hope offers a way for patients with financial hardship to obtain low-cost prescription medications.

Click here:

http://www.lymedisease.org/news/touchedbylyme/prescription_hope.html

Why Are Coinfections So Hard to Beat?

2011-12-12T13:18:00.001-08:00

Very informative article as to why Lyme + co-infections are so difficult to eradicate due to bacteria's biofilm ability to "communicate" as a colony.

Biofilm Research Shows Co-Infection Challenge for Chronic Lyme Disease
(From Jenna's Lyme Blog)

http://www.lymediseaseresource.com/wordpress/biofilm-research-shows-co-infection-challenge-for-chronic-lyme-disease/

Blood Test for Early Parkinson's Disease

2011-12-01T14:43:00.001-08:00

UK researchers say they have developed a simple blood test to detect Parkinson's disease even at the earliest stages. The test detects a substance in the blood indicative of Parkinson's well before physical symptoms appear.

Read full story:

http://psychcentral.com/news/2011/12/01/blood-test-to-detect-early-parkinsons/32047.html

BBC News - Bacteria 'linked' to Parkinson's disease

2011-11-30T10:59:00.001-08:00

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-13469716

Herbs, Hormones, and Heavy Metals

2011-11-29T12:34:00.001-08:00

Here's a 53-page PowerPoint presentation by Dr. Richard Horowitz about Lyme treatments, detox, metals, efficacy of herbal treatments, and treatment of hormone imbalances. This is a PDF file on the ILADS site.
http://www.ilads.org/files/compendium07/Horowitz.pdf

Diagnosis and treatment of Babesia & other coinfections

2011-11-29T12:26:00.000-08:00

Good articles on Cowden protocol and alternative Lyme treatments.
http://www.lyme-disease-research-database.com/lyme_disease_blog.html

Herbs helpful for Lyme

2011-11-23T00:01:00.001-08:00

From a Lyme Yahoo group:

Similax/Sarsasparilla - binds to neurotoxins, neuroprotection

Japanese Knotweed - for neurotoxins, has high resveratrol content, crosses the blood brain barrier, anti-inflamnatory, neuroprotective, protects liver from toxins, stimulates micro-circulation

Stephani root - anti-inflammnatory, as good as corticosterioids

Ginko biloba - for brain hypoperfusion

Red Root - to clear cellular debri (I use to help clear out Babesia carnage)

Burdock - system cleanser, eliminates toxins

Andrographis(warning: don't take if have Chronic Lyme) - anti-toxin, alleviates pain, nerve pain, chronic inflammation

cats claw - anti-inflamnatory, immune modulator, protects the heart, general tonic, boosts CD-57 white blood cells

artemisia - crosses blood brain barrier, anti-inflammatory (caution: I read something about it being bad for CFS, but many have success with it for babesia)

Novel Stem Cell Technique in Pre-Clinical Models of Parkinson's Disease

2011-11-16T01:33:00.001-08:00

On Sunday, November 6, Lorenz Studer, MD, director of the Sloan Kettering Institute (SKI) for Stem Cell Biology, published a paper in the journal Nature on a new strategy for using embryonic stem (ES) cells to graft human dopamine neurons into pre-clinical models of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Historically, ES cells have shown promise for treating PD in a Petri dish, they have not yet been effective once transplanted into a living organism. Dr. Studer’s new technique, however, has revealed new promise in models of PD, reflecting the potential for dopamine cells’ survival and function in the brain.

See full story:

http://www.michaeljfox.org/living_viewpoints_newsInContext_article.cfm?ID=37

BBC News - Study links Parkinson's disease to industrial solvent

2011-11-14T09:45:00.000-08:00

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-15639440

Personal Check-In Nov 8, 2011

2011-11-08T10:23:00.001-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zv2E-Ypq-vM

Borelia Blood Culture Now Available for Clinicians

2011-11-07T17:54:00.001-08:00

Advanced Laboratory Services is pleased to announce that the Borrelia Blood Culture is now available for clinical use in 48 states so far. We have already been accepting samples and reporting results! Read more:

http://www.lymedisease.org/news/lyme_disease_views/culturetest.html

My LLMD says it looks good but needs more testing to make sure Bb is what they are culturing, not other kinds of spirochetes.

Success and setbacks in embryonic stem cell research for PD

2011-11-07T17:48:00.001-08:00

Success and setbacks in embryonic stem cell research
Source: medcitynews.com

Current medical news from today, including embryonic stem cell research for PD

What Parkinson's Teaches Us about the Brain

2011-10-14T10:25:00.001-07:00

Check out this article in NY Times, about exercise and PD.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/12/what-parkinsons-teaches-us-about-the-brain/?src=me&ref=general

Sort of a paradox for Lyme patients because aerobic exercise often makes Lymies feel worse. My Lyme docs have warned against aerobic exercise, saying it's better to concentrate on weight-bearing exercise. After aerobics I do feel much worse, sometimes for two days. But I think I'm going to give some bike riding a whirl.

Exercise & PD

2011-10-12T09:34:00.001-07:00

Exercise and Parkinson's disease:

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/12/what-parkinsons-teaches-us-about-the-brain/

PD Vaccine Shows Hope

2011-10-12T09:26:00.001-07:00

Here's a news story about a potential vaccine for Parkinson's disease. The vaccine prevents the build-up of fibrous tangles called lewey bodies in the brains of PD and Alzheimers patients. There may be application for Lyme patients too, considering that reseacher Alan McDonald found Borrellia spirochetes in 7 of 10 post-mortem Alzheimer's brains he examined, which suggests that there may be a connection between Bb and lewey body formation.

http://www.michaeljfox.org/newsEvents_mjffInTheNews_pressReleases_article.cfm?ID=515

High Risk Medical Insurance

2011-10-05T01:16:00.001-07:00

I believe this is the direct link to the California High Risk Medical Insurance program. Some Lymeies have had good results here:

http://www.mrmib.ca.gov/mrmib/mrmip.shtml

New PD drug research leads to human trials

2011-09-30T16:48:00.001-07:00

From Michael J. Fox Foundation newsletter:
http://www.michaeljfox.org/newsEvents_mjffInTheNews_pressReleases_article.cfm?ID=510

Vanderbilt-MJFF Partnership Yields Drug-Like Molecules Aimed at Improving Treatment of Parkinson's Disease

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center have achieved a milestone in the development of a potential new treatment for Parkinson’s disease that may improve on some of the limitations of current therapy.
Three drug-like molecules that act on a specific glutamate receptor in the brain are ready for the next stage of preclinical testing prior to entering human trials. The molecules were developed with major support from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF).

If all goes well in final preclinical testing, the molecules could be ready for clinical testing as soon as 2013, says Jeffrey Conn, Ph.D., director of the Vanderbilt Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery. “We are very excited to reach this major milestone and are eager to fully understand the extent of benefit that this new treatment strategy will have in patients suffering from Parkinson’s disease,” Conn said.

“Our Foundation is committed to advancing improved symptomatic therapies that could dramatically increase patients’ quality of life,” said MJFF CEO Todd Sherer, Ph.D. “The emergence of successful drug candidates from our partnership … points to the viability of a new model for drug development, one in which academic teams collaborating with forward-thinking funding partners can help keep the pipeline flowing with promising new agents.”

New models are urgently needed as pharmaceutical companies increasingly struggle to recoup their research investments in the development of new treatments. It can cost over a billion dollars to bring a drug to market. Some pharma firms already are downsizing their research operations as patent protection ends for some of their best-selling brand name products. Cuts in health care reimbursement for medications could bring even more financial challenges for the drugmakers.

Parkinson’s disease and the shortcomings of current treatments
An estimated 1 million Americans have Parkinson's disease, a progressive brain disorder characterized by resting tremor, rigidity and slowness of movement, as well as a battery of non-motor symptoms. It is caused by the death of nerve cells in a specific brain region that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine.

Dopamine replacement therapy, today’s gold standard treatment for Parkinson’s, relieves some motor symptoms of the disease, but over time it causes debilitating side effects such as involuntary, uncontrollable movements (dyskinesia). It is believed that dyskinesia is caused at least in part by the ebb and flow of dopamine levels in the brains of those receiving dopamine replacement therapy. Current Parkinson’s treatments also provide less and less benefit to patients as the disease worsens over the long term.
The new Vanderbilt compounds work in a fundamentally different way from dopamine replacement therapy, by bypassing the dopamine system altogether and instead modulating another of the brain’s neurotransmitters, glutamate. Conn and his colleagues have been working to activate a specific glutamate receptor called mGlu4.

The compounds are known as “positive allosteric modulators,” or PAMs. To increase mGluR4 activity while minimizing the likelihood of adverse effects, Conn’s team has taken a subtle approach to manipulating the mGluR4 receptor. “You can liken it to a dimmer switch on a light in your home, where you can turn up the gain of the receptor and its activity, or turn it down, without completely activating it or shutting it off,” Conn explained in a 2009 interview.

In their latest findings, the Vanderbilt researchers describe three PAMs that, when given systemically in a preclinical model of Parkinson’s disease, reach the brain and relieve motor symptoms, including rigidity and akinesia (a “freezing” of certain motor muscles).

NIH support

Conn’s colleagues in this effort include Craig Lindsley, Ph.D., co-director of the Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery and Director of Medicinal Chemistry; Carrie Jones, Ph.D., the center’s director of Behavioral Pharmacology; Colleen Niswender, Ph.D., director of Molecular Pharmacology; J. Scott Daniels, Ph.D., director of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics; and Corey Hopkins, Ph.D., research assistant professor of Pharmacology and Chemistry.

Their work has been supported since 2007 by more than $4 million, largely awarded under MJFF’s LEAPS (Linked Efforts to Accelerate Parkinson's Solutions) initiative, which assembles teams of researchers with the various expertise required to bring a particular project to fruition, and to do so in as efficient and streamlined a way as possible. Conn’s speedy results are an example of a successful LEAPS project in action.

Conn’s work on Parkinson’s disease actually began in the 1990s when he was at Emory University. That research was conducted as part of a Morris K. Udall Center of Excellence in Parkinson's Disease Research supported by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS).
In 2010, he and his colleagues began a partnership with a new NINDS Udall Center at Emory to explore additional allosteric modulators as potential treatments for Parkinson’s disease.

"A primary goal of the NINDS Udall Centers program is to foster translation of research observations into improved treatments for Parkinson’s disease,” said Beth-Anne Sieber, Ph.D., a program director at NINDS. “We are pleased to support Dr. Conn’s discovery efforts as part of this program.”
The Vanderbilt-Fox Foundation partnership is an example of how academic medical centers are helping to fill the “drug pipeline” with new agents that potentially will dramatically improve the health of millions of patients worldwide.

Personal update 9-27-11

2011-09-27T18:12:00.001-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hu_xj1U9ft0

Here's my latest video update.

Sinemet causing nausea

2011-09-25T01:31:00.001-07:00

I took two Sinemet tablets today, along with Ardane. Those are for my PD symptoms. Then I took some Rx pain killers for the disk problems in my upper back. Mid-day I had excellent control of my hands for piano practicing. Not perfect, but much better than usual. I could play trills and turnarounds for the first time in years. I could not play quickly-repeating, rhythmic chords such as in the Chopin 'Military Poloniase', unfortunately. Still, the control and facility I did have was exhilarating and fun! I played for a couple of hours. It's nice to know that the nerves and muscles are still hooked up. I guess it's just the neurotransmitters that are missing, or are in short supply. It's such a weird disease. Whether it's PD or Lyme, it's really crazy makung and frustrating.

Later on, around 9PM, I started feeling shaky again, so I took another Sinemet. It was on a fairly empty stomach. I felt pretty immediately nauseated, within the hour. Hot flashes, low body temp (95.2), dizzy. An hour later it passed, after eating some chicken. I suspect it was the sinemet, but it sure felt funky.

Personal video update

2011-09-24T17:28:00.001-07:00

First video posting from iPad 2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AO78VbenOE

Bob

Using Bone Marrow to Protect the Brain

2011-09-24T16:29:00.001-07:00

Using Bone Marrow to Protect the Brain: Stem Cell Technology Begins Clinical Trial for Lou Gehrig's Disease

ScienceDaily (Sep. 21, 2011) — The ability to produce neuroprotectors, proteins that protect the human brain against neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's and ALS, is the holy grail of brain research. A technology developed at Tel Aviv University does just that, and it's now out of the lab and in hospitals to begin clinical trials with patients suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

See article
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/09/110920080351.htm

Virus destroys Parkinson's symptoms

2011-09-20T02:06:00.001-07:00

Parkinson's disease is a progressive disorder of the nervous system that affects movement. It develops gradually, and often starts with a barely noticeable tremor in one hand. While tremors may be the most well-known sign of Parkinson's disease, the disorder also commonly causes a slowing or freezing of movement...

Read article here:

http://austin.ynn.com/content/health/280432/your-health--virus-destroys-parkinson-s-symptoms

Researchers Find New Bacterium Causing Tickborne Illness Ehrlichiosis in Wisconsin, Minnesota

2011-09-16T13:08:00.001-07:00

August 4, 2011

A new tickborne bacterium infecting humans with ehrlichiosis has been discovered in Wisconsin and Minnesota. It was identified as a new strain of bacteria through DNA testing conducted at Mayo Clinic. The findings appear in the Aug. 4 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Doctors at Mayo Clinic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the University of Minnesota, the University of Wisconsin, and state and local health departments say the new species from the Ehrlichia genus can cause a feverish illness in humans. The new bacterium, not yet named, has been identified in more than 25 people and found in black-legged ticks, also known as deer ticks (Ixodes scapularis), in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Researchers used culture and genetic analyses.

“Before this report, human ehrlichiosis was thought to be very rare or absent in Minnesota and Wisconsin,” says Bobbi Pritt, MD, a Mayo Clinic microbiologist and director of the Clinical Parasitology and Virology Laboratories who helped coordinate the multi-agency team. “Therefore, physicians might not know to look for Ehrlichia infections at all.”

Ehrlichia infect and kill white blood cells and may cause fever, body aches, headache and fatigue. More severe disease may involve multiple organs such as the lungs, kidneys and brain and require hospitalization. Ehrliochosis rarely results in death.

All four patients described in the New England Journal of Medicine article suffered fever and fatigue. One patient, who had already received a bilateral lung transplant, was hospitalized briefly for his illness. All four patients recovered following antibiotic treatment with doxycycline, the drug of choice for treating ehrlichiosis. Although more than 25 cases have been identified, many more have likely been missed or unreported, Pritt says.

The investigation began after Carol Werner, then a technologist at Mayo Clinic Health System’s Eau Claire hospital, noted an abnormal Ehrlichia Polymerace Chain Reaction (PCR) result in 2009 and raised the first red flag. Mayo Clinic then began investigating with the CDC, the universities and several public health departments. The Minnesota Department of Health last year put out a health advisory alerting people that it and its Wisconsin counterpart were seeing increasing reports of ehrlichiosis in humans.

“As the deer tick population continues to spread and increase across Wisconsin, we are likely to see increasing incidence of this new infection, just as we have seen with Lyme disease and anaplasmosis which are transmitted by the same tick species,’’ says co-author Susan Paskewitz, PhD, an entomologist at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

To date, thousands of blood samples from across the United States have been screened by Mayo Clinic laboratory technologists, and the bacterium has been detected only in specimens collected from Wisconsin and Minnesota. Thousands of ticks across the country have also been analyzed, and only those from the two states have been carriers.

Because the bacterium is likely transmitted through the bite of an infected tick, Pritt cautions that people should apply insect repellent and wear pants and long-sleeved shirts when active outdoors.

Doctors need to know to test for ehrlichiosis in the two states so the diagnosis is not missed. However, traditional blood antibody tests may offer misleading results and fail to accurately identify the new species. A specific antibody test for the new bacterium has been developed by the CDC but isn’t widely available. Instead, a molecular blood test that detects DNA from the new Ehrlichia species is the preferred method for detecting this disease in symptomatic patients.

When testing for this new Ehrlichia species, physicians should also consider testing for other tickborne diseases, such as Lyme disease, babesiosis and anaplasmosis, all prevalent in Minnesota and Wisconsin, Pritt says.

Genetically, the new bacterium bears closest similarity to another species of Ehrlichia -- E. muris -- that infects small rodents and deer in Eastern Europe and Asia. E. muris rarely infects humans, and no cases have been reported in North America.

From: Infection Control Today

http://www.infectioncontroltoday.com/news/2011/08/researchers-find-new-bacterium-causing-tickborne-illness-ehrlichiosis-in-wisconsin-minnesota.aspx

Herpes Virus Linked to Alzheimer's

2011-09-16T12:53:00.001-07:00

Laboratories at the University of New Mexico (UNM), Brown University, and House Ear Institute (HEI) have developed a new technique to observe herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV1) infections growing inside cells. HSV1, the cause of the common cold sore, persists in a latent form inside nerve cells. Re-activation and growth of HSV1 infections contribute to cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Details are published in the March 31 issue of PLoS ONE magazine from the Public Library of Science.

"Herpes infects mucous membranes, such as the lip or eye, and generates viral particles," submits study principal investigator Elaine Bearer, MD, PhD, the Harvey Family Professor and vice chair for research, Department of Pathology, UNM School of Medicine. "These viral particles burst out of the cells of the mucous membrane and enter sensory nerve cells where they travel inside the nerve toward the brain. We now can see this cellular transportation system and watch how the newly formed virus engages cellular APP on its journey out of the cell."

Tagging herpes virus inside cells with green fluorescent protein, scientists used live confocal imaging to watch HSV1 particles emerge from infected cells. Newly produced viral particles exit the cell nucleus and then bud into cellular membranes containing amyloid precursor protein (APP). Electron microscopy at HEI detailed the ultrastructural relationship between HSV1 particles and APP.

This dance between viral particles and cellular APP results in changes in cellular architecture and the distribution of APP, the major component of senile plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients. Results from this study indicate that most intracellular HSV1 particles undergo frequent, dynamic interplay with APP, which facilitates viral transport while interfering with normal APP transport and distribution. This dynamic interaction reveals a mechanism by which HSV1 infection leads to Alzheimer's disease.

In developed countries such as the U.S., approximately 20 percent of children are infected with HSV1 prior to the age of five. By the second and third decades of life, as much as 60 percent of the population is infected, and late-in-life infection rate reaches 85 percent.

Symptoms of primary HSV1 infection include painful blisters of the mouth, lips or eyes. After infection, HSV1 persists in nerve cells by becoming latent. Upon re-awakening, new viral particles are made in the neuron and then travel back out its pathways to re-infect the mucous membrane. Many infected people experience sporadic episodes of viral outbreaks as the well-known recurrent cold sore.

"Clinicians have seen a link between HSV1 infection and Alzheimer's disease in patients, so we wanted to investigate what might be going on in the body that would account for this," adds Dr. Shi-Bin Cheng, post-doctoral associate, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Alpert Medical School, Brown University. "What we were able to see in the lab strongly suggests a causal link between HSV1 and Alzheimer's Disease."

"It’s no longer a matter of determining whether HSV1 is involved in cognitive decline, but rather how significant this involvement is," Bearer asserts. "We’ll need to investigate anti-viral drugs used for acute herpes treatment to determine their ability to slow or prevent cognitive decline."

Researchers recommend people treat a cold sore as quickly as possible to minimize the amount of time the virus is actively traveling through a person’s nervous system. The faster a cold sore is treated, the faster the HSV1 returns to a dormant stage.

From:
http://www.infectioncontroltoday.com/news/2011/04/researchers-link-herpes-to-alzheimers-disease.aspx

Researchers Say Local Antibiotic Therapy Stops Lyme Disease

2011-09-16T12:46:00.001-07:00

Lyme disease is a dangerous disease which is transmitted by ticks. Blood-sucking ticks ingest the agents that cause the disease – bacteria of the species Borrelia burgdorferi and its relatives – during a blood meal, and subsequently transmit them to the next victim they feast on, often a person. It is estimated that, in Western Europe, up to half of all ticks carry the bacteria. Although the early symptoms of the illness are quite mild, if left untreated, it can result in serious damage to the skin, the joints, the heart and the nervous system, and effective therapy becomes very difficult.

A team of researchers led by the veterinary bacteriologist professor Reinhard Straubinger at Ludwig-Maximilians Universität (LMU) München has now shown, in an animal model, that application of a gel containing the antibiotic azithromycin to the site of the bite rapidly terminates the infection. The efficacy of this local antibiotic therapy for the treatment of borreliosis in humans is now being tested in a Phase III clinical trial. In the meantime, though, patients must still undergo antibiotic treatment for several weeks and, in many cases, the drug must be administered intravenously – which is distressing not only for children. Furthermore, treatment measures are often initiated on suspicion, because the bacteria are not detectable in the blood soon after one has been bitten by an infected tick.

"Our approach simply involves applying a transparent, self-adhesive plaster to the site of the wound," says Straubinger. "Because the plaster contains very little antibiotic, the effects are localized and side-effects are negligible."

Reference: Knauer J, et al. Evaluation of the preventive capacities of a topically applied azithromycin formulation against Lyme borreliosis in a murine model. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy online, Sept. 15, 2011.

Book about handling chronic illness

2011-09-08T19:58:00.001-07:00

A colleague of mine who is also dealing with chronic, painful and debilitating illness just gave me a reference that might be worth checking out:

Author: Toni Bernhard

Title: How to be sick: A Buddhist-inspired Guide for the Chronically Ill and Their Caregivers.

http://www.amazon.com/How-Sick-Buddhist-Inspired-Chronically-Caregivers/dp/0861716264

Continuing to Lose Weight

2011-09-07T12:45:00.001-07:00

Not sure why I'm down to 124. Possibly because shopping is difficult since the back pain and perhaps the antibiotics and/or Lyme have messed with my absorption. I started taking digestive enzymes a couple of weeks ago. Normal weight for me is 135-140.

Lyme study needs subjects

2011-09-05T22:59:00.001-07:00

This email is to let you know about a Lyme Disease research project going on the the San Francisco Bay Area that needs more Lyme patients as participants. Many of our established members have already heard about this already, but we've had a lot of new people sign up recently who might be good candidates.

The study is being conducted by a health care practitioner who treats Lyme patients in the bay area. She's teamed up with some researchers at Stanford University to conduct a study examining the accuracy of various Lyme Disease tests. This is a Lyme-Literate and CALDA sponsored study. The results will benefit all Lyme patients.

To see if you qualify for the study and to sign up, please see the instructions on the study recruitment flyer, found in the files section of the LEAPS meetup website:

http://bit.ly/n9K

I recenly heard from the investigators they're almost done with the study, they just need a few more people, so please pass this on to everyone you know!

My latest commentary about computers. The Desktop is Dead.

2011-09-02T02:31:00.001-07:00

Well, I've been using an iPhone and iPad most exclusively for my computing needs for the last six months or so. This is probably because I have been mostly incapable of sitting in the chair for any length of time due to the various symptoms. But it's also because I have become fond of these devices. I can take them wherever I want, whether walking around, lying down in bed or sitting in a comfy chair, etc. Makes computing so much easier.

In any case, tonight I had a project to do which consisted of consolidating a bunch of e-mails on my desktop iMac and creating a chart out of them in Microsoft Word. It should have been a very simple project. Should not be difficult, right? Well, it took me about two hours to do it. Unbelievable.

I had not used my new fancy iMac for about two weeks. I am running Parallels with Windows 7, running under OS X. The computer has been mostly in sleep mode over the past few weeks but it had been 'on' some of the time, so conceivably it could have updated itself and been ready to roll. In any case, I powered it up and sat down ready to do some quick work on it and get to bed at a timely hour. Whether it is the electronic goblins, the Muses who are working their wiles against me, or just a ridiculous state of complexity of microcomputers, I don't know, but the stark contrast to the ease with which iOS devices (the iPad in the iPhone) work became so obvious to me that I almost pulled my hair out and threw my computer, as brand-new and shiny as it is, out the window.

Now admittedly, I am dealing with a pinched nerve in my neck and it's giving me major back pain so I am not a particularly happy camper, and I have this incredible tremor from the Parkinson's disease or whatever. So I am not long on patience right now. But still, I am a clever guy, and I know how to get around computers and have written many books about them over the years. So usually I can just skin a cat one way or the other and do the 'computer whisperer' thing, and get stuff to work.

Suffice it to say I had about 20 dialog boxes come up over the course of the time I was working, maybe more. Did I want to update iTunes? How about security updates for OS X. Did I want to? Windows had some updates to do, too. Ad-Aware needed urgently to update. The computer slowed to a crawl a few times with the hard drive getting continuous disc hits, and the CPU pegged despite the fact that I was intentionally doing next to nothing. I had to close all the browser windows I had open and methodically shut down all kinds of stuff like the Apple Mail program and Outlook in order to get the CPU out of the gutter. I eventually just decided to shut down the Windows 7 virtual machine and Parallels, then reboot OS X. So, I had to reboot two operating systems which took another about 15 minutes to do. This was in part because various programs failed to shut down even though I told the operating systems to shut down. And it wasn't just Windows, it was also OS X, too. Mail would not shut down, for example, so I had to force quit it.

After rebooting, the scanner that I was trying to use with Paperport could not be found. In an hour's worth of trying to reconnect it through software and hardware tricks, I did not succeed. I tried another scanner. That didn't work either. Flash wanted to be updated, Java wanted to be updated. The NTFS driver that I have for Mac OS X so I can use my external hard drive timed out and needed to be repurchased. Many another dialog boxes and error messages, things not found, and so forth presented themselves from time to time.

Next, I realized how frustrating it is to actually work with the mouse. I have both a mouse and the magic trackpad connected to the iMac. But with the 27-inch screen on the iMac, getting from one corner to the other corner really takes some hand work. I had to close programs and aim at the little red X or the little red dot in the corner of the application window. Numerous times I missed. Or, I was trying to select a bunch of text and then had to right click on it or remember the right keyboard control sequence for a copy and paste, which happens to be different between Windows and OS X. So I was busy navigating between apps, with a lot of dexterity required. I overshot a few times and application documents disappeared, and so forth. You know, the usual.

Geeze, all I wanted to do was copy some text from some e-mails and put them in another e-mail or in a Word document so I can send it to somebody.

Once I saved the document, it went into some remote folder somewhere, so that I had to navigate to that. Then right click on it and choose Send to > Mail recipient, and then that opened up Word to create a new mail document, and then I had to navigate my recipient list, and so forth. Eventually after rooting around for a while, I got the e-mail sent. The entire endeavor took about two hours. It was excruciating.

I was just saying to a friend today that computers are like relationships: If you have too many of them around you're really asking for trouble. They all take maintenance. I suggest that if you are considering having more than one computer in your life, forget about it. Each one takes so much maintenance that it's not worth having more than one. And once you become familiar with one operating system or one set of applications or one interface or one keyboard or whatever, switching between them is too much mental overhead.

Desktop personal computers are just too damn complicated. Period. I was more than happy to get back to my iPad so I could dictate this rant. Sure, it takes several steps, dictating into Dragon, and double clicking the Home button to switch back and forth between that and BlogPress, but big deal. It's not too difficult, and it actually works.

As much as I hate the idea of having everything on 'the Cloud', and losing control over my data, where it is, who's looking at it, and losing control over my applications, I have to say that it's probably going to be a giant breakthrough when we no longer have to maintain, update, replace, repurchase, purchase new, or whatever all of our applications, all of the time. Updating our operating systems, our virus protection programs, our various other malware protection programs is a gigantic pain in the butt.

Viva le tablet and le Cloud!

Comments?

International Criteria for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis

2011-08-28T08:55:00.001-07:00

Many Lyme sufferers were first diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction (CFIDS/CFS), now called Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). Here is a link to the new International Criteria. It may help some people with their disability and Social Security claims.

http://niceguidelines.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/myalgic-encephalomyeli\
tis-international-consensus-criteria.pdf

Scroll to the bottom "Table 1" for the meat and potatoes. There is also an article about it in ProHealth.com library. When struggling with doctors who tune out at the mention of Lyme, this might be a way to get much needed help.

New Lyme Testing Lab

2011-08-27T09:47:00.001-07:00

There is a new Lab I've discovered in Lubbock Texas, called Spiro Stat. They've been around for two years and test for 35 different co-infections and their various species.

Pathogen Information:

The following organisms can be detected and identified using the test panels offered by Spiro Stat Technologies.

Anaplasma
phagocytophilum
Borrelia afzelii
Babesia microti
Bartonella henselae
Borrelia burgdorferi
Borrelia garinii
Borrelia hermsii
Borrelia lonestari
Borrelia parkeri
Borrelia valasiana
Brachyspira aalborgi
Bracyspira hyodysenteriae
Coxiella burnetti
Ehrlichia chaffeensis
Ehrlichia ewingii
Francisella tularensis
Mycoplasma fermentans
Rickettsia spp (9 species)
Treponema carateum
Treponema denticola
Treponema pallidum
Treponema pertenue

They also test for Babesia and fungi.

Spiro Stat uses modern molecular diagnostic approaches that have been validated under stringent criteria. All laboratory testing is performed in association with a CAP accredited CLIA laboratory, Southwest Regional PCR.

For pricing, see:

http://www.spirostat.com/

Bob's video update 8-19-11

2011-08-25T02:41:00.001-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Q6t8YjiGeU

Nerve disease cell repair 'flaw'

2011-08-22T18:57:00.001-07:00

I saw this story on the BBC News today about ALS and possible PD implications.

A breakdown of a recycling system in cells appears to be the underlying cause of a fatal nerve disease.

< http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-14591364 >

Enzymes Special Report

2011-08-21T11:07:00.001-07:00

Interesting article about digestive and systemic enzymes, and their role in treating inflammatory diseases.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/21/enzymes-special-report.aspx?e_cid=20110821_SNL_Art_1

Dr. Dietrich Klinghardt on Lyme Disease

2011-08-19T23:59:00.001-07:00

Dr. Mercola posted a big article on Lyme today. Mostly, it's about Dr. Klinghardt's approaches to treatment, but there's also some other general Lyme info as well. There's a long video with Dr. Klinghardt on it, too.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/27/dr-dietrich-klinghardt-on-lyme-disease.aspx?e_cid=20110820_DNL_artTest_B1

Personal Update 8-17-11

2011-08-17T17:59:00.001-07:00

Letter to my LLMD today:

Hi Dr. ________

Thought I should report to you that I am in major pain. Like number 10 on a scale of 10 in my shoulder, the shoulder on the side where I have the stiffness and tremors. Also pain has increased in the rt arm, which is much stiffer than before.

To treat the back, I've been to the chiropractor twice and the Feldenkrais practitioner once, and then to my GP yesterday, all for nought, thus far. The pain is between the rt shoulder blade and the spine. This has been going on for over one week now. Everyone seems to think it's a spasm in a muscle, resulting from a strain. But I think it's the parkinsonism which is stiffening the shoulder as well as the arm at this point. What muscle wouldn't freak out from being contracted all day?

I'm taking ibuprofen a lot and also hydrocodone apap 5 500 that Dr Kurn (PD doc) prescribed a while back. But I am pretty incapacitated and the pain is really terrible. Some relief from resting shoulder on a heating pad in bed. If I do anything more than that with the arm I'm in trouble.

I'm not sure what to do about the IVs. I don't know if this has been getting worse because of die off/Herx/oxidative damage from doing so many antibiotics and antiviral antifungal stuff all at the same time (remember, I am doing IV ceftriaxone, IV Flagyl, azithromycin, valacyclovir, and Mepron all at once). I stopped everything yesterday. Nothing has gotten better so far. It's about the same if not worse. The foot tremors are also nonstop.

The pain from the shoulder is radiating down the arm and up the neck a bit. My GP, Nicola Hanchock, ruled out nerve compression yesterday. We are trying to get me into an appointment with the Parkinson's doc Matthew Arnold here in Berkeley to see what he has to say, bcuz it seems as though the parkinsonism has progressed rapidly.

I just ran out of IV Wellness glutathione but I reordered some and I should have it in a couple of days. Other Parkinson's symptoms such as loss of balance, difficulty initiating movement and so forth have also increased pretty quickly. It's rather frightening, but mostly the pain is what is getting to me. Maybe we should have a phone conversation.

The old chest rash around the port has revisited but is about a 2 on a scale of 10. And my swollen red earlobes thing has happened again. Skin is now peeling off them, the swelling lasted 5 days. Now waning. Still swollen and red but less so.

Bob

Tracking Lyme Disease in Dogs May Help Protect Humans - Yahoo! News

2011-08-11T22:58:00.001-07:00

Interesting means of determining estimated danger of infection in your region.

http://news.yahoo.com/tracking-lyme-disease-dogs-may-help-protect-humans-160807893.html

Antibodies Linked to Long-term Lyme Symptoms

2011-08-08T18:07:00.001-07:00

Antibodies Linked to Long-term Lyme Symptoms

from Nature News

Some patients with Lyme disease still show symptoms long after their treatment has finished. Now proteins have been discovered that set these people apart from those who are easily cured.

People who experience the symptoms of Lyme disease, which include fatigue, soreness and memory or concentration loss, after treatment for the disorder are sometimes diagnosed as having chronic Lyme disease or post-Lyme disease syndrome. But these diagnoses are difficult to make, because the individuals no longer seem to harbour the bacteria that cause Lyme disease. And the symptoms could instead be indicative of chronic fatigue syndrome or depression.

Now Armin Alaedini at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York and his colleagues have found that patients diagnosed with post-Lyme disease syndrome have antibodies that suggest they carried the infection for an unusually long time. The finding, published inClinical Immunology, might help the syndrome to be better understood, diagnosed and treated.

http://ow.ly/5XEON

5 Myths about Lyme Disease Treatment

2011-08-07T15:27:00.001-07:00

Here's a very good pamphlet about Lyme disease. A good primer. It's from the Haverford Wellness Center. Oddly enough, it's in Havertown, PA, just across the street from the house I grew up in. I am tempted to go there the next time I get back east.

http://www.lyme-disease-testing.com/5-myths-about-lyme-disease.pdf

Bob

Good List of Glutathione for PD Studies

2011-08-07T01:34:00.000-07:00

I found this while Googling around this evening.

http://www.1whey2health.com/parkinsons_glutathione.htm

Lots of links down at the bottom.

Glutathione and Parkinson's disease: is this the elephant in the room?

2011-08-06T17:09:00.001-07:00

Here is info a blog reader found. She said that www.research1st.com had the original story.

Thanks to Marie for the lead!

PubMed Results
Item 1 of 1

1. Biomed Pharmacother. 2008 Apr-May;62(4):236-49. Epub 2008 Mar 14.
Glutathione and Parkinson's disease: is this the elephant in the room?
Zeevalk GD, Razmpour R, Bernard LP.
Source
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Department of Neurology, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA. zeevalgd@umdnj.edu
Abstract
At least 2 decades have past since the demonstration of a 40-50% deficit in total glutathione (GSH) levels in the substantia nigra in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). The similar loss of GSH in the nigra in Incidental Lewy body disease, thought to be an early form of PD, indicates that this is one of the earliest derangements to occur in the pre-symptomatic stages of PD. Oxidative damage to lipids, protein and DNA in the nigra of PD patients is consistent with the loss of the antioxidant functions contributed by GSH. Past clinical trials that have used an antioxidant approach to treatment have used antioxidants that might substitute for GSH but these have shown modest to little benefit. More recent studies of the functions served by GSH in cells include in addition to its well-known participation in H(2)O(2) and toxin removal, such roles as modulation of protein function via thiolation which may control physiological and pathophysiological pathways to include DNA synthesis and repair, protein synthesis, amino acid transport, modulation of glutamate receptors and neurohormonal signaling. These multifunctional aspects to the workings of GSH in the cell would suggest that its loss perturbs many different processes and that replenishment and maintenance of GSH per se may be the best approach for preventing progressive damage from occurring. Despite this, few studies have been directed at specifically restoring GSH, although, as discussed herein, its unsanctioned use in PD is growing in popularity. This review will focus on glutathione in PD; the various functions carried out by glutathione and possible consequences of its depletion, as well as measures to elevate GSH in the CNS and its use in humans. Consideration of how the CNS generates and handles the substrates for GSH synthesis is also addressed with the view in mind that this may provide insights into control and maintenance of intracellular glutathione.
PMID:

18400456
[PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Dr. Joe Burrascano Audio Podcast

2011-08-03T14:59:00.000-07:00

Check out this free podcast on iTunes. This is a very candid talk by Joe to an audience of MD's. I found it fascinating and learned a few new things. Presented at the American College for the Advancement of Medicine (ACAM). Thanks to Hootan for the tip.

http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?i=95954705&id=351890855

FDA Alert - Diflucan (fluconazole) - Long-term, High-dose Use During Pregnancy May Be Associated With Birth Defects

2011-08-03T14:28:00.001-07:00

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FDA MedWatch Alert
Sent to subscribers of: fluconazole systemic
Drug Safety Communication: Diflucan (fluconazole) - Long-term, High-dose Use During Pregnancy May Be Associated With Birth Defects
August 3, 2011
Audience: OBGYN, Pharmacy, Infectious Disease.
ISSUE: FDA is informing the public that treatment with chronic, high doses (400-800mg/day) of Diflucan (fluconazole) during the first trimester of pregnancy may be associated with a rare and distinct set of birth defects in infants. This risk does not appear to be associated with a single, low dose of fluconazole 150mg to treat vaginal yeast infection (candidiasis). Based on this information, the pregnancy category for fluconazole indications (other than vaginal candidiasis) has been changed from category C to category D. The pregnancy category for a single, low dose of fluconazole has not changed and remains category C.
Read more...

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Flagyl vs. Tindamax - Bioavailability

2011-08-03T14:17:00.001-07:00

I started IV Flagyl today and was researching doses, recommended flow rates, etc. Here's interesting study I just found on the Web. The study compares serum levels of each of these two anti-protozoal drugs over 48-hrs after IV, oral, anal, and vaginal administration. The upshot is that, at least via IV and oral administration, Tindamax has a significantly longer half life.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC184797/pdf/aac00206-0093.pdf

Bob

Fasudil as a Potential Disease Modifying Treatment for Parkinson's

2011-08-02T19:09:00.000-07:00

The Michael J. Fox Foundation - Van Andel Research Institute Testing Fasudil as a Potential Disease Modifying Treatment for Parkinson's

13 Most Difficult Diseases to Diagnose

2011-08-01T14:27:00.001-07:00

A reader sent this in today. A bit spammy because the blog is about insurance, but the info about the diseases is useful.

Hi Bob,

We would love to share with you an article that we just posted on our own blog! "13 Most Difficult Diseases to Diagnose" is linked below and could be a fun way to share this announcement with your readers.

(http://www.insurancequotes.org/13-most-difficult-diseases-to-diagnose/)

It has been a sincere pleasure to read your great content.

Sincerely,

Liz Nutt

Great Podcast on Lyme from Dr. Stricker

2011-07-21T14:31:00.000-07:00

Very interestng stuff...

http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/controversies-in-lyme-disease/id351890855?i=95488692

There is a raft of excellent podcasts there on everything from nutrition to HBOT to cardiovascular disease. All free downloads from ACAM. Check it out.

Bob

Spinal stimulation eliminates Parkinson's symptoms

2011-07-20T20:21:00.000-07:00

Mice with a Parkinson's-like disease improved dramatically after their brains were stimulated via spinal electrodes. See the video here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/video/2009/mar/19/parkinsons-disease-spinal-implant-electrical-stimulation

New Federal Lyme Bill Introduced

2011-07-20T19:36:00.001-07:00

Blumenthal, Reed, Gillibrand, Whitehouse Introduce Legislation to Combat Lyme Disease
Monday, July 18, 2011

(New Haven, CT) – Today, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) joined Lyme disease advocates and researchers at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station in New Haven to announce the introduction of the Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Prevention, Education, and Research Act, a bill to combat the growing epidemic of Lyme disease in New England and across the country. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) are original cosponsors of the legislation. Former Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd, the original author of the legislation, championed the issue during his tenure in the Senate.

Here's the info:

http://blumenthal.senate.gov/press/release/index.cfm?id=E9841CE6-5539-4040-A57B-BD4C5D1C6864

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Creatine as Protection Against Parkinson's

2011-07-19T09:37:00.001-07:00

Another study found that feeding rats creatine helped protect them against tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), which produces parkinsonism in animals through impaired energy production. The results were impressive enough for these researchers to conclude,

"These results further implicate metabolic dysfunction in MPTP neurotoxicity and suggest a novel therapeutic approach, which may have applicability in Parkinson's disease."5

http://www.brinkzone.com/general-health/creatine-and-traumatic-brain-injury/

Lenovo A700 vs. iMac - update

2011-07-18T19:16:00.001-07:00

Lenovo A700 with Windows 7 and OS X

versus....

iMac with OS X and Windows 7

So.... the funny thing is that after all my gloating in a previous post about the Lenovo A700 i5 (two physical cores and two logical cores) and how I got OS X to run on a Windows machine, and how the Windows machine is superior and costs one half the price of the iMac, even I find it hard to believe that I went back to Fry's and traded the Lenovo for a iMac 27 inch with an i5 quad-core processor. Yeah, and I had to cough up another $600 or $700 for it, too.

Why did I do it, you ask?

Well, I decided in the long run, after experimenting with trying to run a bootleg copy of OS X on a Windows machine as a virtual machine under VMware, that the whole thing was too unstable -- a kludge. Not to mention that it's illegal, and difficult to update OS X as new software upgrades come out. It was much more easy, sensible and stable to do essentially what I had done with my Mac Mini, which is to simultaneously run Windows 7 and OS X using VMware Fusion (or Parallels) and do that on a larger Mac for my main computer.

I know it's kind of like heresy, coming from someone who has written 20 books about Windows and its various incarnations over 20 or so years (probably 25 years), and thumbed his nose at Apple fanboi's, but the upshot is that the pricey Apple machines are made very well and the host operating system knows what it should expect as far as hardware goes.

Windows is amazing in that it can run on tens of thousands of combinations of hardware. OS X could never do that, so that is one of the strengths of Windows — you can run it on many many different kinds of PCs, out of the box. There are a gazillion drivers built into Windows, and the installer sniffs around and discovers what you have in your PC box and does a credible job of installing and working. But it's also its weakness: With unexpected hardware changes and so many outboard devices and variations of internal busses, graphics boards, power supplies, BIOS chips, motherboard chipsets, drives, etc, the operating system can still fail to boot, shut down properly, can give you blue screens of death, etc. You can pretty easily install a driver that crashes the system. Also, Windows is the target of many more viruses, ad-ware, and malware. Not that it's more vulnerable to hackers, per se, it's just that hackers go for the biggest target possible, and so they write viruses and malware aimed at PCs.

By contrast, by running Windows under OS X and having OS X be the host operating system, the basic computer is more stable. And VMware or Parallels virtualizes all the hardware, so that further protects the host operating system from crashing. Speed tests show that unlike the pre-Intel days with Macs, Windows runs very fast under virtualization.

Add to this that the 27" screen is probably twice the quality of the one on the Lenovo. It has LED backlighting instead of edge lighting, is bigger, has higher resolution, and it looks amazingly clear and gorgeous. It was hard to give up the Lenovo's touch feature, it's true. But I tested out the Apple Magic Pad, and it's almost as good. It beats the Apple Magic Mouse by a country mile. Furthermore, you don't have to lift up your arm and aim your finger at a spot on the screen, nor wipe off fingerprints every half hour of use.

So in the end, it's turning out that my favorite Windows machines are Macintoshes. How weird is that? I still use an ergonomic Microsoft wireless keyboard with a number-pad, wrist rest, etc., and remap a few keys using the Mac system prefs and remapkey.exe (part of the Windows 2003 Resource Kit), because I hate having the Caps Lock key to the left of the A key. So that takes a little doing. I want Alt in the lower left corner, Ctrl to the left of A (like on a real old-fashioned terminal) and I hide Caps-Lock just to the left of the space bar. It gets a little kinky using two remapping utilities - one in OS X and one in Windows - but I'm getting used to it. Between Command, Option, Alt, Ctrl, and Caps-Lock, it's a kind of free-for-all down on that corner of the kbd. But I do it so that I can use my old, time-tested Word editing macros that are based on MicroPro's WordStar word processor program that I was born and raised on (I'm dating myself here).

The icing on the cake is that by using one of the virtualization programs like Parallels and VMware I can run both the Mac programs of my choice (such as Final Cut Pro) and all my Windows apps simultaneously. I can cut, copy, and paste between them and switch between them effortlessly, so it's like having two computers in one.

The next dragon I have to slay, however, is importing everything from my existing desktop PC into the Parallels virtual machine on the Mac. Both Parallels and VMware Fusion offer utilities that will essentially suck up an entire PC -- including its documents, settings, applications and so forth, and create a virtual machine that is one gigantic file that includes all that stuff from your old computer. Then you import the virtual machine into the destination Macintosh under OS X via VMware, Parallels, or Virtual Box and then you've got your old computer inside your new computer. You don't have to install all of your applications and create all your settings again which could take a week, for most mortals. In theory, great. We'll see how well it works in reality.

There are so many potential gotchas to this scenario that I can't even begin to list them all. I have so many external and internal hard drives on my old computer and all kinds of stuff like video capture, scanners, printers and mirror drives hanging off of it, and two operating systems (there is a dual boot system of Windows XP and Windows 7 on the machine), and all kinds of other stuff like registry hacks that have happened over the years, that I may be shooting myself in the foot by importing kind of an old, war-torn version of Windows 7 rather than starting from scratch as many people would advise. Still, I am curious to see how well the process will work.

Actually, I tried this import approach last year when I bought my Mac Mini. I wanted to import through VMware Fusion a pre-existing HP tablet laptop running 64-bit Windows Vista. It took the better part of a day, connected over Wi-Fi or USB as I recall, and in the and the system failed to boot. It was a mess. I tried several times, and it never did work. I had to install the Win OS fresh. (Probably wiser, because I used Win 7 instead of Vista.) But that import was done using Fusion 2 Converter, and I'll try Parallels 6 Transporter this time.

- Posted by dictation into Dragon on iPad, then using BlogPress from my iPad

PD Patients Significantly Improved after Glutathione IV

2011-07-11T17:15:00.000-07:00

Here are a few remarkable videos of Parkinson's patients before and after 600 mg of intravenous reduced L-glutathione. Dr. Perlmutter claims to have been having substantial success with Parkinson's patients using this approach. Look at that video and decide for yourself. I am hopeful, because I am taking intravenous glutathione now, and it does make me feel better, although I am only taking 200mg per day at this point. Dr. Perlmutter is using much higher doses, but is having almost immediate improvements in balance, expression, gait, and mood.

http://www.glutathioneexperts.com/benefits-glutathione.html

His clinic is called The Glutathione Experts (http://www.glutathioneexperts.com/index.html), and the site has lots of useful PD info.

"The highest concentration of glutathione is found in the liver, making it critically important in the detoxification and elimination of free radicals. Accumulation of these dangerous compounds can result in oxidative stress, which occurs when the generation of free radicals in the body exceeds the body’s ability to neutralize and eliminate them. Free radicals are highly reactive compounds created in the body during normal metabolic functions; they can also enter the body through the environment."

Recovery From Parkinson's Using Chi Gong

2011-07-11T09:26:00.001-07:00

Here's a radio interview with Bianca Molle, a friend of mine, who has recovered from PD using Medical Chi Gong as taught by Mingtong Gu in the SF Bay Area.
http://blogtalk.vo.llnwd.net/o23/show/1/973/show_1973055.mp3

There are also videos and a written story available of her recovery.
at www.chicenter.org. Here's the video:
http://www.blog.parkinsonsrecovery.com/chi-gong-and-parkinsons-disease
There are other interviews located at http://www.parkinsonsdisease.me/

You can write to Bianca at bianca1738@aol.com.

CU researchers find promising drug for Parkinson's disease

2011-07-09T17:57:00.001-07:00

The Denver Post
By Margaret Jackson

Colorado researchers have discovered a drug that stops the progression of Parkinson's disease in mice and is now being tested on humans.

View Full Story
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_18407428?source=email

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Virginia Task Force on Lyme Disease - news video about LD transmission

2011-07-07T20:42:00.001-07:00

This news brief discusses vertical transmission of Lyme disease.

http://www.wusa9.com/video/default.aspx?bctid=1034578832001&odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cfeatured

Report from Virginia's Task Force on Lyme Disease shows transmission from mother to fetus.

WUSA9.com - 2:12 min. news video

Personal Update

2011-07-07T10:00:00.001-07:00

I haven't made a personal entry for a while, so here goes. It's easy to forget to do this, and then I would not have a history recorded anywhere of what I'm going through. So this is partly for my own record-keeping as well as for the elucidation of any readers who might be curious.

In the last few weeks things have continued to progress (decline) in terms of the Parkinsonism. I have worse sleep, typically only about four or five hours a night. Tremors and loss of balance seem to be getting worse. Yesterday I did fall into a wall and hit my head. Just one example. Putting on shoes and stuff like that requires sitting down, although the most difficult thing I do in the day is brushing my hair and trying to put an elastic band around my ponytail. It can take 10 to 15 min. just to do that, and my arms begin to shake. It's very frustrating and I can't figure out how to do it. It's like maybe like aphasia, where someone is searching for a word -- they know the word that they can't find it.

The tremors are beginning to turn into fassiculations and moving up my legs. My thighs now have tremors. My feet are pretty uncontrollable and painful because of the nonstop movement. Torso and limb rigidity (with the exclusion of the left arm) is increasing as well and general stuckness -- all Parkinson's symptoms. Constipation seems to be a little bit better, possibly because I'm tanking up on vitamin C and magnesium oxide a bit more. Sitting in a chair at the computer for more than about 10 min. is agitating and causes rigidity to the point where I have to jump up out of the chair as best I can, which often means lifting myself by my arms, and walking around the room to loosen up my body so that I can sit down again and take a few more words or do some work.

The interesting thing is that I do not appear to have cogwheeling in my arm. That was determined in my last couple of appointments with doctors. I have begun noticing Edema in my right foot and ankle. Not sure if this is the result of the medication, but I have not change my medication regimen significantly recently. So I'm not sure what I can attribute that to. Perhaps some baclofen which I started as a potential means for reducing the muscle contractions in my feet. I am experimenting with reducing various meds in order to see if the edema reduces. I continue to exercise, by walking, occasional light jogging, and jumping on the mini trampoline every day. I also get into an inversion device and hang upside down for probably 15 min. per day.

I am finding it hard to stay on a protein-centric diet because I like fruit so much, but I purchased a bunch of frozen organic hamburger and chicken at Costco and I keep that available for supplementing my protein intake. I am juicing more with my Champion juicer. Everyday I am having some carrot juice with some spinach or hearts of Romaine or something like that and I throw in whey powder for protein as well as hemp protein powder and rice protein powder and a few other odds and ends. Garlic sometimes. Brain fog has been pretty bad, and driving is a bit more difficult, but I can still manage it.

I have been prescribed intravenous glutathione and phosphatidylcholine on a daily basis by my LLMD. I will begin that tomorrow. I will also continue on the intravenous Rocephin, oral azithromycin, and oral Mepron. I continue to lose weight. I'm about 126 pounds now, down 10 pounds from this time six months ago.

Arthritis in my left toes is beginning to become more painful. My doctor diagnosed it as arthritis last week. A trip to my eye doctor noted that I have the beginnings of cataract in my eyes. I am concerned that that might have been instigated by hyperbaric oxygen treatment. That is one of the known side effects of hyperbarics. I was warned about it but only in the case of somebody who already has cataracts. I probably should've had a baseline eye exam before beginning hyperbaric treatments. The ophthalmologist was surprised that a person at my age would have signs of cataracts, and wanted to have a complete list of my medications to analyze and look at possible side effects of cataract production. There may have been other contributing factors than the hyperbaric oxygen. I will report back when I know.

This skin around my port has gotten a rash again, so after two weeks I pulled the needle. I gave it four days to recover and now is fine so I will reinsert the needle and begin intravenous infusions again today. The procedure for infusion of the phosphatidylcholine and the glutathione is a little complicated requiring the use of the 30 mL syringe and dilution with 5% dextrose and water. I think I will let a professional show me how to do it properly.

Please forgive any typos here. I had to dictate this into my iPad. Speaking of which, I bought a new computer to replace my 10 year-old desktop. It's a Lenovo A700. Pretty cool all-in-one computer. It has a 23" touch screen, which is one reason I bought it. It's difficult enough to use the mouse and the keyboard, so touching things on the screen is a big plus. There's a whole raft of these computers available now and they all seem to have touch screens. HP makes them as do Gateway, Sony, MSI, and Asus. For under about $900 they pack a punch, and eliminate all those cables that go behind and under your desk. The Apple iMacs have prettier screens but cost about $1000 more. I almost went for the 27" iMac but opted for the versatility and cost savings of the Lenovo: built-in speech recognition, TV DVR recording, greater number and types of connections, wider variety of software. I even installed Mac OS X on it as well as Windows 7. Best of both worlds, plus touch!

Milk Thistle, Vit C+Vit E Can Interfere with Flagyl

2011-07-06T14:57:00.000-07:00

Lyme Times Doctors Forum #51 _www.lymedisease.org

(http://www.lymedisease.org) or _www.lymetimes.org_ (http://www.lymetimes.org)

"Silymarin (Milk Thistle) has been shown to reduce blood levels of flagyl by 30%, and
effect that could lead to therapeutic failure."

"Vitamin C 250mg BiD (twice daily) , combined with Vit E 200mg BiD,
reduces effectiveness of metronidazole/flagyl through an unknown mechanism."

Lithium Tested as Parkinson's Drug

2011-07-06T13:49:00.000-07:00

Lithium, used to treat bipolar disorder, prevents the buildup of toxic proteins and cell loss associated with Parkinson's disease, U.S. researchers say.

Lead author Julie Andersen of the Buck Institute for Research on Aging says preclinical research is under way to determine correct dosages for the drug and the Buck Institute is working toward initiating Phase IIa clinical studies of lithium in humans in conjunction with standard Parkinson's disease drug therapy.

"This is the first time lithium has been tested in an animal model of Parkinson's disease," Andersen says in a statement. "The fact that lithium's safety profile in humans is well understood greatly reduces trial risk and lowers a significant hurdle to getting it into the clinic."

Another New Lyme Test Lab

2011-07-02T11:38:00.001-07:00

Central Florida Research claims to have a good Lyme test for both humans and pets.

A Smarter Test - The Lyme Disease Antigen Test by Flow Cytometry (LATFC)

Traditional Lyme disease tests such as Western Blot and ELISA tests rely on the patient being sick and for many Lyme disease sufferers these tests come back negative, adding to their confusion and misery. Unlike other Lyme tests, CFR's LATFC test, only available at Central Florida Research, can detect Lyme in any of its three stages:

Stage 1: Early localized infection – 1 to 4 weeks
Stage 2: Early Disseminated infection - 1 to 4 months
Stage 3: Late Persistent Infection – months and years after infection

The price seems to be $250, and the site claims that some insurance carriers will pay for it. They also offer Lyme testing for pets. See the site for explanations of the testing methodology. I will update this entry if I hear any reports from doctors about the efficacy of the tests. If you have any experience with this lab, please leave a comment.

http://www.centralfloridaresearch.com/home

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Excellent Lyme Info Source - Lyme Project

2011-07-02T10:44:00.001-07:00

Just discovered this web site, thanks to tipster Hootan:

Lots of resources and info here, including expert interviews, videos, articles. This is the site of Dr. Daniel Cameron, past President of ILADS.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Ayurvedic Clinic in India for Parkinson’s

2011-07-02T02:20:00.001-07:00

A friend of mine recently wrote to me:

“My girlfriend Sorrel, who's an acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist, spent some time a few years ago visiting an Ayurvedic treatment center in India that specializes in Parkinson's disease. She said they've been having remarkable successes recently. Here's the info:”

http://www.facebook.com/l/7d782oyURVnq8YvRTmsEn2vmI4A/www.aryavaidyasala.com

Another NPR Radio Program on Lyme Disease!

2011-07-02T00:31:00.001-07:00

Here’s a link to an excellent program about Lyme, testing, the politics, etc.

“Community Conversation” on WSKG Radio.

Guests:
* Dr. Daniel Cameron, previous president of ILADS
* Pamela Weintraub, author of Cure Unknown

Just click the link below and the show should play. Or, right-click and download the MP3 file and play it later.

http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/national/local-national-975526.mp3

"Push" Rocephin Instead of the Usual Drip Method?

2011-06-29T17:28:00.000-07:00

In this video, long-time Lyme patient Barbara Arnold (who is now almost completely recovered) explains how she has managed to live with doing over three years of IV Rocephin (Ceftriaxone) without using an IV pole, tubing and saline bags. She developed the technique on her own, partly to reduce her out-of-pocket costs. I thought it was worth doing a little interview with her in which she explains and demonstrates how she does it. (We will post Part 2, where Barbara shows how to actually do the infusion after the syringes are filled.)

Direct link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3PTKLi0cvc

CAUTION: Please note that pushing a typical 2G dose of Rocephin should be done in no shorter than 45 minutes, according to one LLMD, who told me it could cause serious harm to the kidneys. So if you do this technique of pushing Rocephin, you might be well advised to mind the clock.

Bob Inserts His Huber Needle and Begins Infusion

2011-06-28T01:42:00.001-07:00

http://gallery.me.com/bobcowart?view=detail#100007

This is a 40-minute video of a potentially educational (depending on your perspective) and at times difficult to watch process of me shakily inserting a Huber needle into the Porta-Cath implanted in my chest. After I do that, I apply a new bandage and prep for an infusion. Various scintillating commentary along the way, delivered dead-pan. (I really gotta work on my style.)

Have a great time watching this one! As woody Allen said about a bad date he had once, I haven't had this much fun since the Nuremberg trials. All this, because Blue Shield doesn't want to pay for my continued antibiotic therapy with Rocephin (arguably the most effective IV antibiotic against Bb).

Largest Lyme Survey Ever

2011-06-27T22:20:00.000-07:00

The voice of Lyme patients: CALDA survey results published in peer-reviewed journal

Prior to the 2009 IDSA Lyme hearing, CALDA conducted what turned out to be the largest-ever survey of Lyme patients. Now, results of that survey have been published in Health Policy, a highly regarded peer-reviewed journal.

The study found that patients with Lyme disease have significant barriers to healthcare access: difficulty obtaining diagnosis and treatment, a need to travel great distances for health care, insurance denials, and difficulty receiving care at local hospitals.

Read more about it on the Lyme Policy Wonk blog.
http://www.lymedisease.org/news/lymepolicywonk/198.html

Lyme Info from New Hampshire Dept of Health

2011-06-27T21:57:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the NH Dept of Health and Human Services, we have this information.
http://www.dhhs.nh.gov/dphs/cdcs/lyme/index.htm

The Lyme Disease Fact Sheet provides information about Lyme Disease and ticks including disease symptoms, vaccination and treatment and tick bites, tick removal and disinfection. Other information including how to prevent infection and exposure.

Watch a Deer Tick Video

Lyme Disease & Tick Bites

Ticks can transmit Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme Disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. Symptoms vary by disease, including fever, chills, and fatigue.

The New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets and Food offers free tick identification to New Hampshire residents. The intent is to monitor the distribution of tick species in NH. Complete the Tick Submission Form and mail the tick and form as described. Ticks submitted will not be tested for disease-causing pathogens.

Avoiding Tick Bites

Stay on trails outdoors; avoid areas of overgrown brush and tall grasses.
Wear light-colored clothes so ticks can be easily seen.
Wear a hat, long-sleeved shirt and long pants tucked into boots or socks.
Check yourself often for ticks.
Use insect repellent containing DEET or permethrin (follow directions).
Arboviral & Tick Prevention for Kids
Avoid Mosquito & Tick Bites
Tick/Mosquito Poster

Is It A Tick Bite?

Spider Bite – Several fluid-filled bumps appear at the site of the bite.
Tick Bite – The bite is hard, itchy, and forms into lumps. A red, rash-like halo surrounds the bite and then slowly spreads outwards.

Removing An Attached Tick

Remove the tick promptly. The sooner you remove it, the less chance of infection.
Use tweezers to grasp the tick's mouthparts at the surface of the skin.
With a steady motion, gently pull the tick straight out.
Wipe the bite area with an antiseptic, or wash with soap and water.
Be alert for symptoms of illness over the next 7-10 days.

Do not squeeze the tick.
Do not rub petroleum jelly on the tick.
Do not use a hot match or cigarette.
Do not pour kerosene or nail polish on the tick.

Lyme on NPR

2011-06-27T19:19:00.000-07:00

The Latest on Lyme Disease
By Laura Knoy on Monday, June 27, 2011
http://www.nhpr.org/latest-lyme-disease

New Hampshire has the country’s third highest incidence of this tick-borne illness. We talk to experts about the disease, its tiny carriers, and why it has made such inroads in the Granite State. We’ll also hear how researchers are studying the Lyme-spreading tick in new ways to figure out where and why they thrive.

Guests

Dr. Jose Montero, chief epidemiologist at the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services
Alan Eaton, entomology specialist at UNH Cooperative Extension
Michael Palace, research assistant professor at UNH and principal science investigator on a NASA-funded project examining Lyme disease in New Hampshire
Gary Daniels, Republican state representative from Milford, who sponsored legislation addressing medical treatment issues surrounding Lyme disease
Listeners who call in

Buck Institute studies lithium as treatment for Parkinson’s

2011-06-27T14:39:00.000-07:00

June 24th, 2011 08:42am

By Dan Verel, Business Journal Staff Reporter

Print Friendly

NOVATO, CA — Preclinical research on the possibility of treating Parkinson’s disease with lithium is under way at the Buck Institute for Age Research, which is working toward beginning a second phase of clinical studies on humans treated with the drug in conjunction with standard therapy.
Lithium “profoundly” prevents the cell loss and aggregation of toxic proteins associated with Parkinson’s in a mouse model of the condition, according to the Buck. The new research appears in today’s online edition of the Journal of Neuroscience Research.

[Read full article]

Babesia on the Rise

2011-06-23T19:54:00.001-07:00

NY Times

June 23, 2011

Once Rare, Infection by Tick Bites Spreads
By LAURIE TARKAN
A potentially devastating infection caused by tick bites has gained a foothold in the Lower Hudson Valley and in coastal areas of the Northeast, government researchers have found.

Molecular characterization of Babesia

The condition, called babesiosis, is a malaria-like illness that results from infection with Babesia microti, a parasite that lives in red blood cells and is carried by deer ticks. Though far less common than Lyme disease, babesiosis can be fatal, particularly in people with compromised immune systems.

Because there is no widely used screening test for babesiosis, its spread poses a particular threat to the blood supply, scientists said. "We are very worried about it and are doing everything in our power to address this," said Sanjai Kumar, chief of the laboratory of emerging pathogens at the Food and Drug Administration.

According to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were six cases of babesiosis in the Lower Hudson Valley in 2001 and 119 cases in 2008, a 20-fold increase. In areas where Lyme disease is endemic, like coastal Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Long Island, babesiosis also is becoming very common, said Dr. Peter Krause, senior research scientist at the Yale School of Public Health.

In one study of residents of Block Island, R.I., Dr. Krause found babesiosis to be just 25 percent less common than Lyme disease. Babesiosis also is spreading slowly into other regions where it did not exist before, like the Upper Midwest, said Dr. Krause.

Many people who are infected with the parasite have no symptoms at all, while others experience mild to moderate flu-like symptoms that may last for a few days or as long as six months. "But some people get so sick that they wind up hospitalized, put into an intensive care unit, or even dying," said Dr. Gary Wormser, chief of infectious diseases at Westchester Medical Center in New York.

In states that track the disease, there are an estimated 1,000 reported cases a year, said Dr. Krause, but he and other experts believe this represents a fraction of the people who are infected. In the Block Island study, researchers tested about 70 percent of the islanders and found that about one quarter of adults and half of children who were infected had no symptoms and were therefore not reported. Even people with mild to moderate symptoms may never see a physician. Even if they do, the condition may not be accurately diagnosed.

Reported cases (Stanford U.)

Experts fear that many undiagnosed patients may be donating blood. Currently, blood banks do not screen for Babesia because the Food and Drug Administration has not licensed a test for this purpose. The only way to screen a patient is by using a questionnaire, which simply asks blood donors if they are infected.

Babesiosis already is the most frequently reported infection transmitted through transfusion in the United States, responsible for at least 12 deaths. In New York City, six transfusion-associated cases of babesiosis were reported in 2009. Infection by this route can be serious: One study found approximately 30 percent of people who were infected by a transfusion died.

Between 1999 and 2007, several infants in Rhode Island developed babesiosis following blood transfusions. The Rhode Island Blood Center has become the first in the country to use an experimental new test to screen blood for the parasite.

Experts urge blood transfusion patients and their doctors to be aware of symptoms of babesiosis, which can occur up to nine weeks after a transfusion.

The symptoms can be vague (there is no tell-tale rash as there may be with Lyme disease) and include fever, sweats, chills, headache, fatigue, and muscle aches and pains. In people who also have Lyme disease, doctors might suspect babesiosis if the symptoms are particularly severe or the antibiotics are not working, said Dr. Krause. A diagnosis can be confirmed through blood testing.

Infants and adults over age 50 are more likely to get moderate to severe symptoms if infected. People at increased risk of complications include patients with compromised immune systems (such as people receiving immunosuppressants), those who've had their spleens removed, and those with lymphoma or H.I.V. or who are being treated for cancer.

If not caught and treated early, babesiosis can lead to such complications as kidney, lung or heart failure. The infection can be treated with antimicrobial medications, but people with serious complications are less responsive to the drugs.

Why the parasite is spreading and why it's spreading more slowly than Lyme disease are not well understood. One theory is that Babesia may be carried primarily in mice, which don't tend to travel far afield. The bacterium causing Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi, can be carried by birds.

Monthly Mercury Detox Group in Berkeley

2011-06-21T11:10:00.001-07:00

http://mercuryandmore.weebly.com/support-group.html

Bay Area (CA; USA)
Chronic Mercury Poisoning
Self-Help Support Group

Do you have ongoing health issues? Chronic mercury poisoning is an under-diagnosed condition, described in the medical and toxicology literature but not yet recognized by most physicians or institutions.

Meetings: Thursdays 1-3 pm, once a month, check link above.
Where: Live Oak Park, Berkeley. We'll meet in the picnic area above Walnut Street, near the Arts Center, but if some other group has nabbed this area, look for our "No Hg" sign elsewhere in the park. Dress for some tree sap and dust. This is a fragrance-free event.
Agenda: First, reports (please bring an idea, book, or report to share); then sharing (how are you doing?); then a free-form discussion.
Facilitators: Stevenson Munro (510) 250-7922; Kristin Homme, MPH,
kghmhe-supgrp@yahoo.com; (510) 525-1003; mercuryandmore.weebly.com

General contact: Leo Cashman, Executive Director, DAMS (Dental Amalgam Mercury Solutions); (651) 644-4572

The support group usually meets the second Tuesday or Thursday of each month, at various locations, to share insights, exchange information, raise awareness, and plan outreach. Whatever your issues in coping with this misunderstood condition, we're here to support you.

Why doesn't my doctor know about chronic mercury poisoning? There is a delay between scientific discoveries and clinical practice. Meanwhile, special interests tout mercury as safe based on flawed population studies that ignore genetic susceptibilities.

What are the symptoms? Symptoms vary and may include chronic fatigue, chemical sensitivities, fibromyalgia, immune dysfunction (e.g., chronic Lyme and Candida), autoimmunity, allergies, food intolerances, gut dysbiosis, hormone imbalances, infertility, insomnia, tinnitus, erethism, psychiatric disorders, and neurodegenerative problems including multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease and autism. * Having multiple health problems suggests that mercury is the root cause.

How could I have gotten exposed to mercury? Major sources include dental amalgams, fish (many species), vaccines, prenatal exposures, and breast milk. Minor sources include some processed foods and consumer products. Other sources include occupational exposures, unsafe amalgam removal, and pollution from coal or hazardous waste combustion.

How do I know whether I have mercury poisoning? Most chronic mercury poisoning must be assessed indirectly, based on symptoms and minor lab anomalies. Blood levels of mercury indicate only recent, not chronic, exposure. Urine levels of mercury indicate excretion, not retention.  Retained mercury can only be measured on autopsy.  With low sensitivity and high specificity, a porphyrins test can identify severe chronic mercury poisoning, but since porphyrins are easily destroyed by heat or light, the risk of false negatives is high. A hair test can reveal a general mineral transport disorder associated with mercury even when hair mercury appears low.

What can I do about it? Mercury poisoning is largely curable. Some methods are more effective and more economical than others. Unfortunately, some methods can be dangerous, causing redistribution of mercury to the brain.
____________
* Mercury affects each person differently because it blocks sulfhydryl -- a chemical group ubiquitous within enzymes and transport proteins that vary with the individual. It also causes oxidative damage, similar to premature internal aging. Since nutritional supplements may alleviate these problems temporarily, reliance on such may suggest mercury poisoning.
For questions: click Contact.

Lyme Disease Symptoms: Key Facts About This Mysterious Illness

2011-06-21T08:33:00.001-07:00

From Huffington Post

Posted: 06/18/11 12:32 AM ET

Summer is peak season for transmission of Lyme disease.

The only known transporter of Lyme bacteria -- the deer tick -- goes through the most infectious stage of its life cycle in the summer.

But you don't need to be in contact with a deer to get a deer tick bite. Deer ticks can hitch a ride on small animals and land right in your backyard.

Here is a case study that highlights why Lyme disease is a mystery illness:

Anne had been diagnosed with three different autoimmune diseases, each by a top specialist:

Crohn's disease, an inflammatory disorder of the intestinal tract that causes abdominal pain and diarrhea.
Iritis, an inflammatory disorder of the eyes that causes eye pain and blurred vision.
Spondyloarthritis, an inflammatory disease that attacks the spine and other joints.
Two of the specialists wanted to treat her with immune suppressive drugs, a decision that would have been counterproductive, given the fact that her real diagnosis was Lyme disease -- an infection spread by a tick bite...

[Read full article]

New Blog by Gordon Medical Associates

2011-06-20T18:24:00.000-07:00

Gordon Medical Group

On March 21, 2011, Gordon Medical Associates and the California Lyme Disease Association co-sponsored a talk on Lyme disease with Dr. Joseph J. Burrascano, Jr., followed by a Question and Answer panel with Lyme practitioners from the northern California area. Dr. Burrascano, as always, was full of information, and in spite of his rapid speed delivery, we found there was not enough time left for the panel to answer all of the questions patients had to ask. Dr. Gordon agreed that Gordon Medical would provide answers to the questions on a blog, which is what we have here. You can also find the Questions and Answers on a blog on CALDA’s website.

Here's the Gordon Medical blog site with Q & A. Good stuff!

http://puttinglymebehindyou.wordpress.com/

New Lyme Book by Richard Ostfeld

2011-06-20T12:04:00.000-07:00

Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne illness in the U.S. with 30,000 cases reported annually. [The CDC estimates the real number of new cases is 200,000-300,000, but only 10% are reported. -Bob] Lyme disease is the most frequently reported disease that can be passed from animals to humans.Worldwide, Lyme disease affects the lives of millions of people. But there is very little public discussion about the environmental conditions that encourage the spread of Lyme disease.

New Lyme Disease Book

A new book, Lyme Disease: The Ecology of a Complex System, presents an assessment of Lyme disease as well as the factors that contribute to its expanding range. The author is Dr. Richard S. Ostfeld, Senior Scientist and Animal Ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, New York.

Speaking about the research on Lyme Disease done at Cary Institute, Dr. Ostfeld notes: "Some spots within the Northeast are much riskier than others and we've developed specific hypotheses to explain why."

Ostfeld has studied the ecology of tick-borne diseases for more than twenty years and argues that an overly simplistic view of Lyme disease ecology and risk has caused us to focus on the wrong culprit—deer.

Revealing What Spreads Lyme Disease

Instead, Outfield's long-term research shows that white-footed mice are the critical hosts for black-legged ticks, which carry and spread the bacterium that causes Lyme disease. White-footed mice thrive in the small woodlots found throughout cities and suburbs. Very high mouse populations allow more ticks to survive and lead to predictable spikes in human Lyme disease exposure.

Risk of Lyme Disease

Ostfeld identifies risk factors and recommends steps that can prevent Lyme disease from continuing to expand and increase in intensity. Furthermore, he turns our attention to land-use planning and the ways in which biodiversity loss increases disease risk.

Outfield's book on Lyme disease looks at:

The importance of looking at human infectious disease as an ecological system
Why intact forests with a diversity of vertebrates (opossum, squirrel, fox, etc.) are vital to human and ecological health
Why Lyme disease is an excellent model system for understanding other infectious diseases that are transmitted from animals to humans, such as SARS and West Nile virus
Links between landscape management and human health

See a book review at Aspenn Environmental Services
Buy at Amazon

Source:

The Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies is a private, not-for-profit environmental research and education organization in Millbrook, N.Y. For more than twenty-five years, Cary Institute scientists have been investigating the complex interactions that govern the natural world. Their objective findings lead to more effective policy decisions and increased environmental literacy. Focal areas include air and water pollution, climate change, invasive species, and the ecological dimensions of infectious disease.

Arm and Foot Tremors as of 6-21-11

2011-06-20T10:57:00.000-07:00

Here are the latest vids of my developing tremors. If anybody has good ideas about how to mitigate these or even if you have these symptoms and want to comment about them, I'd love to know about your experiences!

Arm tremors
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIyLxit8oSw

Foot tremors
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYUmziJxUFc

Filarial Worms Found in Ticks - Should Humans Get Wormed?

2011-06-19T21:41:00.000-07:00

Filarial Worms

We shouldn’t be surprised, if our horses (and our dogs) get Lyme disease. They run in the fields and trot or run through forest trails…and we get Lyme the same way. Yet we wonder why horses and dogs recover so much faster. One big difference is that most responsible animal owners have their animals wormed regularly.

Recently, Dr. Eva Sapi, Ph.D wrote a fascinating article about the role of parasites in chronic Lyme – similar to the role of biofilm the parasites hide and protect the spirochetes from antibiotics, herbal treatments and our own immune systems.

Dr. Eva Sapi Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Biology and Environmental Science at the University of New Haven, where she combines teaching with research, leading graduate students in developing a higher level of understanding of Lyme disease. . She has organized three national Lyme disease conferences in the last several years and has taken over much of the research that Dr. Alan MacDonald conducted over the last 30 years regarding the importance of biofilms in eradicating Lyme disease.

In her research, Dr. Sapi also investigates the presence of different formations (spirochete, round bodies and biofilm) of Borrelia burgdorferi, the Lyme disease bacteria which has been highly controversial since it was first released by Dr. Alan MacDonald in Vienna in 1985 when Dr. MacDonald stunned the medical world with a special slide show on neo-natal tissue that he had amassed over years of autopsying stillborn babies as the pathologist at South Hampton Hospital. Using a dark-field microscope technique to capture the images on film, Dr. MacDonald presented his shocking hypothesis to the world at the Second International Symposium on Lyme Disease and Related Disorders. Unfortunately he was ridiculed at the time.

As the years have passed, evidence continues to mount validating the tedious and detailed work by Dr. MacDonald and his associates such as Dr. Sapi. When Dr. MacDonald developed Alzheimer's, scientists and medical researchers rushed to continue his important work – in many cases directing their research into other areas using his important groundbreaking work.

For instance, Dr. Sapi also studies resistance of these different forms of Borrelia burgdorferi to antibiotics and natural agents.It has been proposed that certain parasites could also be a factor in Lyme disease. European doctors have already incorporated Ivermectin, an antihelminth drug, into their Lyme disease protocol with surprising success. Ivermectin is well known for its effectiveness against filarial nematode infections and is often used by veterinarians to eradicate parasitic infections.

Can Lyme disease patients have filarial nematode co-infection and can they acquire this infection from ticks? The only evidence reported of filarial worm presence in ticks was from a study by Burgdorferi’ in 1984 where thirty microfilarial worms (species not identified) were found in one adult Ixodis dammini tick in Shelter Island, NY.

Black flies have already been identified as vectors of filarial nematodes. Interestingly, ticks can also be used as an in vitro experimental vector system to study the transmission of filarial nematodes and it was shown that the infected nymphal stage could transmit the filarial worms. If filarial nematodes could be a tick-borne co-infection of Lyme disease patients, their eradication would require additional treatments using specific filaricidal drugs, which could explain why standard antibiotic based protocols often fail in some chronic Lyme disease cases.

Preliminary research data on the potential presence of filarial nematodes in ticks from the University of New Haven research group, suggested that Ixodes tick could harbor filarial nematode DNA sequence and these sequences have high similarity to one of the filarial nematode species called Onchocerca.

Filariasis infects more than one hundred and twenty million men, women, and children throughout the world. There are a number of nematode species that use mosquitoes as their vectors, causing different lymphatic filariasis infections. Onchocerca volvulus, for example, is responsible for river blindness.

However, it is very possible that the species we have found in deer tick is a novel Onchocerca species due to that there are only being partial similar to known Onchocerca species. A phylogenetic approach is being used now to determine the exact filarial genus and species similarity. Identification of this potential novel tick-borne pathogen could help to design more specific tests and treatment for patients with a tick bite history and could provide a novel therapeutic target for physicians to explore for those chronically ill Lyme disease patients, not to mention the smaller percentage of people who contract Lyme from biting flies, fleas and mosquitoes.

Reprinted from Lyme Disease Resource (Jenna's Lyme Blog). See source:

http://www.lymediseaseresource.com/wordpress/ivermectin-for-chronic-lyme-i-give-that-to-my-horse

Lyme update 6-20-11

2011-06-19T14:25:00.000-07:00

Here's my update for today.

http://youtu.be/aLykIRrsIrw

Bob

What Do You Do If You Have Lyme Disease?

2011-06-16T12:16:00.000-07:00

Not all Lyme Disease rashes look the same… here’s mine

(Reposted from Renegade Health Article)

A few years ago, I found a tick on the back of my leg.

Living in Connecticut, I knew this was a regular occurrence. I’ve pulled ticks off of myself for as long as I can remember.

What was different about this one was that it hurt a bit at the point of the bite. Most of the others never did. Anyway, I pulled it out quickly and didn’t think much about it for about 24 hours. The reason I thought about it again, was that Annmarie noticed a round, red rash around where the bite was.

This is an erythema migrans (or EM or simply a bull’s eye rash) and is a sure sign of a Lyme infection. What I did to get rid of the infection and what I recommend others to research is fairly well documented on the blog, but the other day, I received this question and I think Lyme disease is worth writing about again.

Here’s the question from John:

“I know that Kevin cured/healed himself of Lyme Disease years ago. Could he please give me the steps that he had to take to rid himself of this dreaded disease. Please do not tell me to see a trained physician, after 9 years and 36 physicians I am still fighting the horrible Lyme plague and I don’t think seeing another physician is going to do it for me. I am looking for natural treatments rather than long term antibiotics. Please help me with what ever you can to fight this Lyme bacteria. Thank you, John K.”

Alright, John, I’m going to give you my best (and keep in mind these tips apply to many different types of illness)…

The pain and frustration of disease

First off, I can tell you’re frustrated about this situation. There is nothing more painful, dizzying, annoying, painstaking or self-introspective than getting a disease (maybe a divorce or a close death in the family could be more or less.)

Your frustration with Lyme is shared by just about everyone who gets it, including myself. The health challenges I’ve had over the last few years (while I was trying to get healthier than I was!) have been acne, a massive yeast infection and Lyme. Each one has come with its own share of heartache, questioning and emotional baggage.

There are two things that I recommend you focus on throughout this ordeal – before anything else – that will dramatically increase your chances of getting better, or at least get you to feel more positive about the situation. (You may or may not already be doing these, but I have to write this for people at all levels of the process!)

The first is to know that you will find a way to get better. I’ve spoken to many owners and managers of health clinics. One thing that is shocking – but maybe not – is that these owners and managers generally have a hunch about which people the treatment will work for and which ones it won’t. Not because of their particular disease, but because of their attitude. Have an attitude that you will succeed and your chances, as airy-fairy as it sounds, of getting better do increase. This type of placebo effect has been documented in scientific literature, not just self help books.

Second, is to keep searching. It’s been 9 years and 36 doctors, right? Maybe the 37th is the right one for you. It’s frustrating, it’s overwhelming, it’s tiring, but the reality is that your quality of life is suffering.

So you have two choices:

One is to stop now and give up and let the disease wreck your body even more.
Two is to pick yourself up and keep going, keep searching, and keep trying new things.

If you fall down in the rain on the way to your car, what will you do? Stay on the ground and feel sorry for yourself while you get soaked to the bone? Or will you get up, brush yourself off and get inside the car to go where you need to go? Since you’re here, I imagine you’ve chosen #2.

Maybe seeing another physician will do it for you. I know you may not think seeing another physician will do it for you, but this might be the wrong approach. I strongly believe in mentors.

When I found the rash on my leg, I called two of my most trusted health mentors. Both gave me the same advice. Take 21 days of antibiotics. I was shocked. These doctors are well known NATURAL doctors. I did some research, found some natural resources and did the Western and natural approach. It worked. But in my case, I was diagnosed within 48 hours. Long term Lyme is a different story and long term antibiotics have serious side effects.

What I suggest, is that you keep your mind open to find a Lyme Literate MD, or LLMD. If you search around, there are message boards and websites that are completely dedicated to finding these professionals who actually know what they’re talking about – many of them take a very natural approach.

This type of mentorship, or physician-ship, is a very good way of getting yourself better. (If you’ve done this already, then let’s move on to the next point.) Have patience with a treatment. Not so much with Lyme, but in my own experience, I’ve found myself being very impatient with a particular treatment from time to time.

Using herbs for my yeast issue is a perfect example. I’d try something for a few days, still see symptoms like acne or stomach ache and decide that it wasn’t working.

At first, I never fully gave any one treatment a fair shot. It’s a natural process that people experience when they have a disease. Their personal time frame for a treatment is much shorter than it takes for the treatment to be effective.

In your case John, it may actually be the opposite. Maybe you’ve been using ineffective treatments for too long and it’s time to switch it up to something new. Either way, an introspective look at how you’re feeling, how you’re dealing with the situation and your patience levels is highly recommended.

For me, I didn’t really get rid of my yeast issues until I stuck with a protocol for a YEAR. (No sugar, lower fat, inclusion of yogurt in my diet.)

You’re only as strong as your immune system

Now I’m going to get into the stuff you’re probably looking for. Sometimes the things you maybe don’t want to hear are the most important, that’s why I put them first. In these next few sections, I’m going to give you some real, natural info on Lyme treatment. Now remember, I’m not a doctor. This is based on my own personal experience as well as that of others I’ve talked to who’ve had the disease.

With Lyme, if you can right your immune system, your chances of getting better are dramatically increased. My theory (just a theory, but doesn’t need a whooping amount of science to back it up!) is that Lyme can only infect a weak immune system. I had been bitten by ticks my whole life. I lived in Connecticut. Why didn’t I get the infection before?

There are two possibilities:

First is that I had been bitten by dozens and dozens of ticks that weren’t infected by spirochetes (the Lyme bacteria.)
Second is that my immune system previously was strong enough to fight off the infection at the point of the bite.

Both could be correct, but let’s say the second one is for my explanation here.

During the time I was bit by the tick, my health was declining. I had done some experiments with superfoods (chocolate) and had wrecked my adrenals. My muscles were cramping when I exercised, I was tired all the time and unable to get out of bed, I was even concerned that I had some serious disease, since I had never felt so awful in my life.

All these are signs that my immune system, as well as other systems were wrecked. It was during this time that I was bit by the tick. So what does this mean? The focus for combating Lyme needs to be on two levels:

First, you do need to kill the bacteria.
But, second, and maybe most importantly, you need to boost your immune system.

Of course, boosting the immune system can help kill the bacteria, but with Lyme – because it is such a sneaky and insidious disease – doing both increases your chances of getting better faster.

How do you treat Lyme naturally?

Like I said, my situation was different that yours, but I can point you to two invaluable resources for natural Lyme treatment. When I first found out I had Lyme, I went to Amazon.com and ordered every book there was on Lyme disease. At the time, 4 years ago, there were only about 6-7 books on the subject.

When they were delivered to the house, I opened them up one by one, only to find that 5 of them basically said – summarized – “we know what Lyme is, but don’t know how to treat it.” Pretty disheartening. What was promising, is that two did have some interesting information. These are the two that I recommend to anyone who asks a question similar to the one that I’m answering here.

First up is Healing Lyme, by Stephen Buhner. (The full title is this: Healing Lyme: Natural Healing and Prevention of Lyme Borreliosis and Its Coinfections.) This book is a fantastic resource of herbs that have been shown to either boost the immune system or help kill bacteria or viruses. It’s a book that anyone with Lyme (or interested in boosting the immune system) should carry around with them at all times. Using the techniques in the book is not a guarantee that you’ll get better, but it certainly gives you a little more confidence. It did for me. I used a combination of the herbs and supplements that were recommended in the book which included una de gato, andrographis, camu camu, minerals, B vitmains, and echinacea. This approach may or may not work for you, so I strongly recommend you get the book, read it and work together with a practitioner who knows about the herbs recommended.

The second book is The Top 10 Lyme Disease Treatments, by Bryan Rosner. Mr. Rosner is simply an independent researcher on Lyme that became one while he finding an effective treatment for himself. In his book, he explains 10 different natural (and Western) treatments that have shown to be promising to treat Lyme. I like the layout of the book, because it doesn’t profess one treatment is more effective than the other, it just gives honest details about the research behind each treatment and how to do each one.

Some people believe that a combination of treatments from this book, or herbs as well, may be the best way to boost your immune system enough to eventually fight off the spirochetes that are ravaging your body. I happen to believe this as well. Brian also has a website that you can look into as well which is here.

Things to keep in mind

A lot of people who I talk to are raw foodists who want to get rid of Lyme with just diet. While this may be possible, I want to caution you about this approach. First off, the raw food diet is not a long term solution for everyone. I can’t say this strongly enough. Believe me when I say this…There are many myths and untruths in the raw food world. I’ve seen them first hand as Annmarie and I traveled around the country for 2 years. What you see on the Internet is very different than what you see in person.

Second, since it takes significant resources in terms of minerals, vitamin D, B vitamins and more to fight the infection, and since you’re immune system can already be weakened (likely causing gut imbalances), your digestion may be compromised. If this is the case, the raw food diet may leave you even more depleted. This doesn’t mean that you can’t eat high raw, or maybe even a complete raw food diet, what it means is that there are multiple factors to consider – not just raw food or not.

Where does this leave us?

For Lyme, if you see a tick bite and get a rash, get antibiotics. I know it’s against “Renegade Health” type advice, but this is an acute infection that can be brutally destructive to your health. While I was looking for natural treatments for Lyme (and had just started to take the antibiotics), Annmarie went to a health food store looking for andrographis. She asked the owner behind the counter for the herb.

Since it’s not too popular of an herb, he asked what she was using it for. She told him that I had Lyme and wanted to try some herbs. Immediately, he held out his hand which was uncontrollably shaking. He looked at Annmarie and said, please have him see a doctor first. He explained that he wished he had never started with a natural approach and no the disease had caused irreversible nerve damage.

When Annmarie relayed this to me, it definitely made me think I was doing the right thing by starting my treatment the way I was. On the other hand (for you, John) since this is a long term experience, invest in these two books immediately. Read them. Start to boost your immune system and find a Lyme Literate MD who can help guide you along the way.

I hope that helps and please keep us updated!

I want to know your thoughts: If you’ve been ill, what thoughts helped you heal?

Live Awesome!
Kev

To see the 50 or so comments on Kev's blog, click here.

Latest Pesticide Info from EWG

2011-06-16T10:56:00.000-07:00

EWG Dirty Dozen

Environment Working Group (EWG) just released its 2011 Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce -- an update to the handy guide that helps you avoid the Dirty Dozen, conventional fruits and vegetables that are highest in pesticide residues -- and choose items from the Clean 15 list instead. Eat healthier and save money at the same time!

What's new? The popular apple is now at the top of the Dirty Dozen as the fruit or veggie highest in pesticides. And for the first time, cilantro is also on the list. Testing by federal scientists found 33 unapproved pesticides on 44 percent of the cilantro samples tested -- the highest percentage of unapproved pesticides recorded on any item since EWG started tracking the data in 1995. Mushrooms also make their first appearance on the Shopper's Guide as part of the Clean 15.

What else is new? Click here to see EWG's 2011 Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce!

Lyme Disease Radio Show on KQED "Forum"

2011-06-15T12:42:00.001-07:00

Lyme Disease
Source: kqed.org

The tick-borne illness Lyme disease is on the rise -- but many patients and their advocates say the disease is often underestimated, misdiagnosed and improperly treated. We discuss the effects of Lyme disease and the controversy surrounding its diagnosis and treatment.

Find a Lyme Doctor

2011-06-12T13:22:00.000-07:00


Star Trek Voyager's holographic doctor

Lyme is a clinical diagnosis. You need to go to a doctor who knows their stuff. Here is a doctor referral page. It's on lymediseaseassociation.org.

http://lymediseaseassociation.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=277&Itemid=74

New UC Davis study says Lyme hides out in lymph nodes

2011-06-09T11:35:00.001-07:00

Researchers at the University of California, Davis, have found that Lyme bacteria "have developed a novel strategy for subverting the immune response of the animals they infect." Their study appears on-line in the journal Public Library of Science Biology.

Lyme disease bacteria take cover in lymph nodes, study finds

June 8, 2011

The bacteria that cause Lyme disease, one of the most important emerging diseases in the United States, appear to hide out in the lymph nodes, triggering a significant immune response, but one that is not strong enough to rout the infection, report researchers at the University of California, Davis.

Results from this groundbreaking study involving mice may explain why some people experience repeated infections of Lyme disease. The study appears online in the journal Public Library of Science Biology.

“Our findings suggest for the first time that Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria that cause Lyme disease in people, dogs and wildlife, have developed a novel strategy for subverting the immune response of the animals they infect,” said Professor Nicole Baumgarth, an authority on immune responses at the UC Davis Center for Comparative Medicine.

“At first it seems counter-intuitive that an infectious organism would choose to migrate to the lymph nodes where it would automatically trigger an immune response in the host animal,” Baumgarth said.

“But B. burgdorferi have apparently struck an intricate balance that allows the bacteria to both provoke and elude the animal’s immune response.”

Read entire story:

http://www.lymedisease.org/news/lyme_disease_views/lymphnodes.html

Move Like a Hunter-Gatherer, Live Longer

2011-06-09T11:14:00.001-07:00

Posted by: Dr. Mercola | June 09 2011 | 18,460 views

If you want to reduce your risk of chronic disease and live longer, you might want to try behaving like a hunter-gatherer. Hunter-gatherers tended to engage in short bursts of physical activity followed by periods of rest, and health experts are agreeing that this may be a healthier way to live.

Hunter-gatherers probably expended between 800 and 1,200 calories per day in physical activity. The average American today, however, expends only a small fraction of this energy -- with the result being that stamina, muscle strength, and flexibility aren't maintained.

According to Yahoo Health:

"What's more, our inactive ways cause us to miss out on yet more healthful habits enjoyed by hunter-gatherers -- socializing and outdoor living ... Human beings lived for eons as hunter-gatherers, so it's not surprising that our bodies are built to thrive under physically demanding conditions outside."

Sources:
• Yahoo Health May 24, 2011
• Progress in Cardiovascular Diseases 53 (2011) 471–479 [PDF]

Curious Reduction in Tremor Post Indigestion

2011-06-05T11:59:00.001-07:00

The strangest thing happened to me last week, and I wonder if anybody has some input about what might have caused it. I went to a friend's house for dinner, and when I came home I had a really intense pain in my stomach. It felt like indigestion on a major level. In any case, after I had intense diarrhea that night and passed about everything that was in my gut, my tremoring pretty much stopped for the first time in a long time. It returned in the morning, as usual, when it's at its worst.
Mind you, I've been on all kinds of antibiotics for years, something like six years, and I've been doing intravenous Rocephin now for quite a while as well. Also Mepron, azithromycin, and a few other things, and tons of supplements. Also, intravenous glutathione, Meyer's cocktails, phospholipids, and the usual stuff that we all try. I have not done chelation of heavy metals yet, but that is on the horizon.
But, anyway there was this curious connection between my gut emptying out and some symptom relief. I'm wondering about it, and scratching my head. I have had colon hydrotherapy a number of times, and this effect did not happen. So it must've been higher in my gut that there maybe lives some toxic build up or something. If anybody has any ideas please let me know.

Keyboard Shortcuts for Mac

2011-06-02T15:16:00.001-07:00

If you're an old PC hacker like me, you are used to using keyboard shortcuts to do lots of stuff. Rather than having to mouse around and point and click at stuff, keyboard shortcuts let you get things done quickly, such as switch between apps, windows within an app, cut, copy, paste, shutdown, restart, take a screenshot, print a document, eject a disk, and much more.

For the Mac, you can find complete set of these commands at the following address.

http://www.danrodney.com/mac/

Sleep Shortage Saps Immune Systems, Worsens Parkinson's

2011-06-01T00:54:00.001-07:00

Sleeping well is one of the cornerstones of optimal health, and if you ignore your poor sleeping habits, you will, in time, pay a price.

Unfortunately, sleep deprivation is such a chronic condition these days that you might not even realize you suffer from it. According to the National Sleep Foundation's (NSF) 2010 "Sleep in America Poll," few Americans get sufficient amounts of sleep. Only four in 10 respondents said they got a good night's sleep every night, or almost every night, of the week.

Furthermore, according to a report in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), lack of sleep can further exacerbate other serious and chronic diseases, such as:

Parkinson disease (PD)
Alzheimer disease (AD)
Multiple sclerosis (MS)
Gastrointestinal tract disorders
Kidney disease Behavioral problems in children

Read article:

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/06/01/16-things-you-didnt-know-about-sleep.aspx

1.	Biomed Pharmacother. 2008 Apr-May;62(4):236-49. Epub 2008 Mar 14. Glutathione and Parkinson's disease: is this the elephant in the room? Zeevalk GD, Razmpour R, Bernard LP. Source University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Department of Neurology, Piscataway, NJ 08854, USA. zeevalgd@umdnj.edu Abstract At least 2 decades have past since the demonstration of a 40-50% deficit in total glutathione (GSH) levels in the substantia nigra in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). The similar loss of GSH in the nigra in Incidental Lewy body disease, thought to be an early form of PD, indicates that this is one of the earliest derangements to occur in the pre-symptomatic stages of PD. Oxidative damage to lipids, protein and DNA in the nigra of PD patients is consistent with the loss of the antioxidant functions contributed by GSH. Past clinical trials that have used an antioxidant approach to treatment have used antioxidants that might substitute for GSH but these have shown modest to little benefit. More recent studies of the functions served by GSH in cells include in addition to its well-known participation in H(2)O(2) and toxin removal, such roles as modulation of protein function via thiolation which may control physiological and pathophysiological pathways to include DNA synthesis and repair, protein synthesis, amino acid transport, modulation of glutamate receptors and neurohormonal signaling. These multifunctional aspects to the workings of GSH in the cell would suggest that its loss perturbs many different processes and that replenishment and maintenance of GSH per se may be the best approach for preventing progressive damage from occurring. Despite this, few studies have been directed at specifically restoring GSH, although, as discussed herein, its unsanctioned use in PD is growing in popularity. This review will focus on glutathione in PD; the various functions carried out by glutathione and possible consequences of its depletion, as well as measures to elevate GSH in the CNS and its use in humans. Consideration of how the CNS generates and handles the substrates for GSH synthesis is also addressed with the view in mind that this may provide insights into control and maintenance of intracellular glutathione.
	PMID: 18400456 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Lyme Disease Source: kqed.org The tick-borne illness Lyme disease is on the rise -- but many patients and their advocates say the disease is often underestimated, misdiagnosed and improperly treated. We discuss the effects of Lyme disease and the controversy surrounding its diagnosis and treatment.