2. Cloak: Bb has the ability to enter our immune cells and kill them from the inside out and then coat itself in the immune cell’s pro- teins in order to travel around undetected by our immune system. It is as if the Bb has put on our uniform and our immune system now sees this organism as one of our own.
3. Decoy: Bb has the ability to release some of its protein structures, called blebs that chronically activate our immune system. When the immune system comes along and sees these foreign proteins an at- tack is initiated. An over active immune system may attribute to the development of autoimmune disease. It is as if the Bb has painted our allies uniforms with an opposing color therefore we mistake our allies as enemies and destroy them with friendly fire.
4. Hide (biofilms or in the cell): Bb has the ability to hide in differ- ent places in our body. It can hide within the cells themselves out of harm from detection by our immune system or deep within bio- films. Biofilms are layers of different microorganisms that are stuck together and are in a difficult-to-penetrate “slime”. These biofilms are found throughout our body, in the gastrointestinal tract, nasal mucosa, and possibly even our blood stream. It is as if our enemy is hiding in a place we would never suspect such as our backyard or attic.
Testing…How, Why and When
I feel that it is important to reiterate a section from part one of this article.
“Lyme is a clinical diagnosis supported by laboratory data.” -Dr. Charles Ray Jones, MD
Read that quote very carefully, in fact re-read it. It indicates that it is first up to the physician and the patient to review signs and symptoms and then determine whether or not Lyme disease should be included in a diagnosis. This is because the conventional testing that is available right now is very limited and is unreliable. Without a doubt it is understood that there is much to be
desired when it comes to our ability to accurately, identify everyone who is infected with Bb through diagnostic testing. However, if you are concerned about whether or not you have been infected, test- ing is an important step. If testing reveals that you are positive then chances are you have been exposed and have an infection. The danger is when we rule out Lyme because of a negative test. Lyme is always a clinical diagnosis consisting of your history and signs and symptoms, supported by laboratory data. In other words, if the clinical diagnosis points to Lyme then treat for Lyme, even if the test is negative. Keeping this in mind I will briefly discuss some different types of testing that you should consider if you believe you have chronic or persistent Lyme. The CDC Criteria for a Lyme diagnosis is based on a Two-Tier testing system. First a person will have an ELISA blood test, which measures the total amount of antibodies against Bb. If positive this will be followed by a Western Blot to look for specific protein patterns or bands that are present in the immune cells. For a posi- tive diagnosis 5 out of the 10 IgG bands that are examined must be present or 2 out of the 3 IgM bands that are tested need to be present. A downside of this two step testing criteria is that a false negative ELISA will result in no further testing and that the Western Blot excludes several bands that are known to be specific for Bb. It is unfortunate, but patients rarely meet these CDC guidelines and
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HUGH SADLIER, M.Ed., BCCH Board Certified Consulting Hypnotist
sadlier@hypno-health.net www.hypno-health.net
Maine Pediatric Hypnosis
Treatable conditions: • Bed-wetting • Tourette’s • Migraines • Insomnia • Phobias • IBS • Performance anxiety
Eileen M. Poulin, MD
Certified: American Board of Pediatrics American Society of Clinical Hypnosis
4 Fundy Road, Suite 103 Falmouth, Maine 04105 207.781.0040
www.MainePediatricHypnosis.com
207.773.5200
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