4 ms·
Shingles is caused by varicella (chickenpox) virus that's already latent in your nerves. Really unlikely that it was a "co-infection", it just reactivated becau
by notabee 5y ago
Shingles is caused by varicella (chickenpox) virus that's already latent in your nerves. Really unlikely that it was a "co-infection", it just reactivated because your body was busy fighting Lyme.
- shockeychap 5y agoI'm not sure what you think "co-infection" means, but you just described precisely that. The reactivation of shingles meant that he was simultaneously infected with two different agents. "Co-infection" (for me at least) implies nothing about how or where the secondary infection came from.
- notabee 5y agoThat's fair. It's a really commonly implied thing among the quackier side of Lyme treatment that every tick is going to unload a clown car full of pathogens (used to justify even more unvalidated tests). But, by the definition, it's just co-occurring infections regardless of vector.
- Kenji 5y ago> that every tick is going to unload a clown car full of pathogens They mostly are, though. Lyme is not the only horrible disease. There's Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) and other nasty shit. As a kid, I was in the woods every day. Didn't get a tick for years, despite walking through thick woods in shorts. Then I got stung a few times, didn't think much of it. Then I got Lyme. Had terrible joint pains for months despite immediately taking Doxycycline. Since then I almost never went deeper into the woods again. You're immediately full of ticks. I once picked up a piece of trash that was on the side of the path and immediately had a tick crawling on my hand. What a nasty infestation of our woods. Did you know that Lyme is a sexually transmitted disease (STD)? Yes, if you have intercourse with someone who has Lyme, you may get infected as well. Lyme is a horror show.