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The Diagnosis Dilemma

Lyme disease is a complex infection that can affect various systems in the body including the joints, nervous system, heart, and skin. Unfortunately, without an expanding ring-like rash (the “hallmark” bull’s eye rash is the most common skin manifestation), Lyme and other tick-borne illnesses often go undiagnosed and untreated, leading to deep-seated infections and long-term impairments.

Many symptoms of Lyme are similar to other illnesses, which complicates diagnosis. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends a two-step process when testing blood for evidence of antibodies against the Lyme bacterium. However, Lyme disease blood testing is fraught with problems, false negatives and false positives (false negatives could exceed 50%) and, at best, should only be an adjunct to a clinical diagnosis of the disease.

According to the CDC, the diagnosis should be based upon your symptoms, medical history, tick exposure, and geographical area (“endemic” locations). Blood tests should only be used to provide supporting evidence for the diagnosis.

A new report published in Clinical Infectious Diseases acknowledges the need for better tests. Newer approaches in direct detection show promise and could help thousands of people with Lyme to get the treatment they need.

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COMPLETE LIST OF LYME SYMPTOMS

Head, Face, Neck:
• Headaches

• Facial paralysis (“Bell’s palsy”)
• Tingling sensations
• Stif neck
• Sore throat, swollen glands
• Heightened allergic sensitivities
• Twitching of facial/other muscles
• Jaw pain/stifness (“TMJ”)
• Change in smell or taste
Digestive/Excretory System:
• Upset stomach (nausea, vomiting)
• Abdominal pain
• Irritable bladder
• Unexplained weight loss or gain
• Loss of appetite, anorexia
Respiratory/Circulatory Systems:
• Dificulty breathing, air hunger
• Night sweats or unexplained chills
• Heart palpitations
• Diminished exercise tolerance
• Heart block, murmur
• Chest pain or rib soreness
Psychiatric Symptoms:
• Mood swings, irritability, agitation
• Depression and anxiety
• Malaise
• Aggressive behavior / impulsiveness
• Suicidal thoughts (rare cases of suicide)
• Overemotional reactions, crying easily
• Disturbed sleep: too much, too little, dificulty falling or
staying asleep
• Feeling as though you are losing your mind
• Obsessive-compulsive behavior
Cognitive Symptoms:
• Forgetfulness, memory loss
• Attention problems, distractibility
• Confusion, dificulty thinking
• Dificulty with concentration, reading, spelling
• Disorientation: getting lost in familiar areas
Reproduction and Sexuality
Females:
• Unexplained menstrual pain, irregularity
• Reproduction problems, such as miscarriage, stillbirth,
premature birth, neonatal
• Extreme PMS symptoms
• Pelvic pain
Males:
• Testicular or pelvic pain
Eye, Vision:
• Double or blurry vision
• Sensitivity to light
• Eye pain
• Floaters
Ears/Hearing:
• Decreased hearing
• Ringing or buzzing in ears
• Sound sensitivity
• Pain in ears
Musculoskeletal System:
• Joint pain, swelling, or stifness
• Shiting joint pains
• Muscle pain or cramps
• Poor muscle coordination, loss of reflexes
• Loss of muscle tone, muscle weakness
Neurologic System:
• Numbness in body, tingling, pinpricks
• Burning/stabbing sensations in the body
• Burning sensations in feet
• Weakness or paralysis of limbs
• Tremors or unexplained shaking
• Seizures, stroke
• Poor balance, dificulty walking
• Increased motion sickness, wooziness
• Lightheadedness, dizziness
• Encephalitis (inflammation of the brain)
• Meningitis (inflammation of the protective membrane
around the brain)
• Encephalomyelitis (inflammation of the brain and
spinal cord)
• Dificulty with multitasking
• Dificulty with organization and planning
• Word finding problems
• Slowed speed of processing
Skin Problems:
• Erythema Migrans (rash)
General Well-being:
• Decreased interest in play (children)
• Extreme fatigue
• Unexplained fevers (high or low grade)
• Flu-like symptoms (early in the illness)
• Symptoms seem to change or come and go
Other Organ Problems:
• Dysfunction of the thyroid (under or over active)
• Bladder & kidney problems (including bed wetting,
urgency/frequency to urinate)
• Newly developed beef or meat allergy (usually from
Lone Star tick bites)

http://globallymealliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/LymeSymptoms.pdf