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Something to note for anyone in Lyme disease range: The bullseye is the stereotypical sign, but it is not necessarily going to show up 100% of the time. When I

Something to note for anyone in Lyme disease range: The bullseye is the stereotypical sign, but it is not necessarily going to show up 100% of the time. When I was diagnosed with Lyme disease in ~Y2K New Jersey, I had the bullseye rash, and the doctor called in the nurses to look at it because he had never seen one before, despite diagnosing a lot of people with Lyme disease.

Covzire 2y ago
Hard logic dictates maybe the other diagnoses were something else.
- southerntofu 2y ago
  No, Lyme disease is entirely treatable in the first days following the infection. You can get it multiple times and treat it every time. Once you don't treat it for a few days, you'll have it for life and that's when it gets nasty.
  - bregma 2y ago
    This is untrue. Borelliosis is treatable at any time: it's caused by a spirochete very similar to syphilis. The second time I had it it was diagnosed about 10 months after infection began, and a simple course of 100 mg Doxycycline for 21 days was all it took. It's true that (a) sometimes an advanced case where the bacterial infection has spread to the brain requires a stronger intravenous antibiotic that will cross the blood-brain barrier and (2) the infection can cause permanent damage to the joints, heart, and even the brain. But the latter is no longer Lyme disease, it's just arthritis, heart disease, or brain damage and has to be treated symptomatically. You no longer have Lyme though.
dabber 2y ago
I've had it three times as a kid and the most recent one didn't produce a "bulls eye" rash. I knew what it was by then and went to the doctor, symptomatic, telling them that I had limes, but they hadn't seen it before and told me I had the flu. I got a second opinion with blood work that came back positive for limes. So if you have "the flu" symptoms around a time you were had been running around grassy area where limes is a thing, ask for blood work.
- astura 2y ago
  It's "Lyme disease," named after Lyme, Connecticut (which, in turn, gets its name from Lyme Regis in England). Not "limes," that's a fruit.
  - dabber 2y ago
    Sure, but I'm not a doctor and anyone who is living in an area that I'm speaking to will understand what I wrote and those that don't (perhaps yourself included) might learn a new colloquial phrase given the context of the comment.
    - Freak_NL 2y ago
      When writing about medical issues, spelling matters. If you don't like being corrected, then just ignore the helpful hint and move on. Doubling down on a typo is just weird.
    - parthianshotgun 2y ago
      We aren't mind readers, tell us the context, is it a regional spelling?
    - astura 2y ago
      Maybe you couldn't get treatment because you told your doctor you "had limes" rather than "are exhibiting symptoms of Lyme disease after a tick bite." Precision matters in medical contexts.
  - cs02rm0 2y ago
    Although Lyme Regis gets its name from the river Lim. (But yes, Lyme disease).
    - wddkcs 2y ago
      And the river Lim potentially got its name from the Latin word for 'border'.
eurleif 2y ago
Conversely, a doctor told my dad he couldn't have Lyme because he didn't have a bullseye rash. That resulted in a significant delay in treatment, and probably in permanent damage. I'm still mad about that.
- mindslight 2y ago
  That's a typical experience of the US medical system, where you're lucky if you get ten minutes before they start looking around for a broom stick to shoo you out the door. One should have some idea of what levers one expects a doctor to pull. If a doctor isn't really engaging with your problem, then push towards those. Obviously you can't directly ask for them but rather focus on the right symptoms to nudge them there. You have to tiptoe around their ego. And if you're wondering why you've got to learn to be your own doctor instead of relying on specialization of labor, well, welcome to our post-capitalist overfinancialized hellhole. Also for this particular topic, you can send a tick in to UMass for testing and they'll tell you if it has Lyme and many other diseases. There's a bit of a turnaround time so it doesn't work for primary triage, but it's sure nice to find out that you're definitely in the clear.
  - giantg2 2y ago
    "You have to tiptoe around their ego." Only if you have a shit doctor. I've had to be an advocate for medical care of family members, and I've had a few doctors actually compliment me on being an engaged advocate for their treatment. You still want to be respectful and open minded, but some basic study of the condition/treatment/lingo can go a long way to them seeing you as an informed patient they are willing to work with.
    - maxrecursion 2y ago
      When you go to an urgent care it is a total crapshoot. I've seen some of the worst doctors ever there. One literally looked at my throat for 5 seconds, said I had strep, and went back to playing on his phone, they weren't busy I was the only person in there. I've had other misread tests for my kids, saying they had strep when they had RSV. But some urgent care doctors have been really good. I think the ratio is changing in the wrong direction though.
codingdave 2y ago
I also was informed by a doctor that the bullseye sometimes manifests as just a band around your waist. Think in 3D when asking yourself if something new on your skin is a bullseye rash.
sn9 2y ago
For future reference, if you strongly suspect something specific and you have reason to believe your doctor is wrong in dismissing your concerns, you can double-check that they're following evidence-based best practices by looking up the issue on UpToDate. For example, you can look up Lyme disease and see how it should be tested and when it shouldn't be tested (for which there are very real reasons). It requires a fee to use, but it's not much compared to healthcare costs of missing a diagnosis. If you find they're being negligent, definitely print it out and show it to them or get a second opinion.

Covzire 2y ago

Hard logic dictates maybe the other diagnoses were something else.

southerntofu 2y ago
No, Lyme disease is entirely treatable in the first days following the infection. You can get it multiple times and treat it every time. Once you don't treat it for a few days, you'll have it for life and that's when it gets nasty.
- bregma 2y ago
  This is untrue. Borelliosis is treatable at any time: it's caused by a spirochete very similar to syphilis. The second time I had it it was diagnosed about 10 months after infection began, and a simple course of 100 mg Doxycycline for 21 days was all it took. It's true that (a) sometimes an advanced case where the bacterial infection has spread to the brain requires a stronger intravenous antibiotic that will cross the blood-brain barrier and (2) the infection can cause permanent damage to the joints, heart, and even the brain. But the latter is no longer Lyme disease, it's just arthritis, heart disease, or brain damage and has to be treated symptomatically. You no longer have Lyme though.

dabber 2y ago

I've had it three times as a kid and the most recent one didn't produce a "bulls eye" rash. I knew what it was by then and went to the doctor, symptomatic, telling them that I had limes, but they hadn't seen it before and told me I had the flu. I got a second opinion with blood work that came back positive for limes. So if you have "the flu" symptoms around a time you were had been running around grassy area where limes is a thing, ask for blood work.

astura 2y ago
It's "Lyme disease," named after Lyme, Connecticut (which, in turn, gets its name from Lyme Regis in England). Not "limes," that's a fruit.
- dabber 2y ago
  Sure, but I'm not a doctor and anyone who is living in an area that I'm speaking to will understand what I wrote and those that don't (perhaps yourself included) might learn a new colloquial phrase given the context of the comment.
  - Freak_NL 2y ago
    When writing about medical issues, spelling matters. If you don't like being corrected, then just ignore the helpful hint and move on. Doubling down on a typo is just weird.
  - parthianshotgun 2y ago
    We aren't mind readers, tell us the context, is it a regional spelling?
  - astura 2y ago
    Maybe you couldn't get treatment because you told your doctor you "had limes" rather than "are exhibiting symptoms of Lyme disease after a tick bite." Precision matters in medical contexts.
- cs02rm0 2y ago
  Although Lyme Regis gets its name from the river Lim. (But yes, Lyme disease).
  - wddkcs 2y ago
    And the river Lim potentially got its name from the Latin word for 'border'.

eurleif 2y ago

Conversely, a doctor told my dad he couldn't have Lyme because he didn't have a bullseye rash. That resulted in a significant delay in treatment, and probably in permanent damage. I'm still mad about that.

mindslight 2y ago
That's a typical experience of the US medical system, where you're lucky if you get ten minutes before they start looking around for a broom stick to shoo you out the door. One should have some idea of what levers one expects a doctor to pull. If a doctor isn't really engaging with your problem, then push towards those. Obviously you can't directly ask for them but rather focus on the right symptoms to nudge them there. You have to tiptoe around their ego. And if you're wondering why you've got to learn to be your own doctor instead of relying on specialization of labor, well, welcome to our post-capitalist overfinancialized hellhole. Also for this particular topic, you can send a tick in to UMass for testing and they'll tell you if it has Lyme and many other diseases. There's a bit of a turnaround time so it doesn't work for primary triage, but it's sure nice to find out that you're definitely in the clear.
- giantg2 2y ago
  "You have to tiptoe around their ego." Only if you have a shit doctor. I've had to be an advocate for medical care of family members, and I've had a few doctors actually compliment me on being an engaged advocate for their treatment. You still want to be respectful and open minded, but some basic study of the condition/treatment/lingo can go a long way to them seeing you as an informed patient they are willing to work with.
  - maxrecursion 2y ago
    When you go to an urgent care it is a total crapshoot. I've seen some of the worst doctors ever there. One literally looked at my throat for 5 seconds, said I had strep, and went back to playing on his phone, they weren't busy I was the only person in there. I've had other misread tests for my kids, saying they had strep when they had RSV. But some urgent care doctors have been really good. I think the ratio is changing in the wrong direction though.

codingdave 2y ago

I also was informed by a doctor that the bullseye sometimes manifests as just a band around your waist. Think in 3D when asking yourself if something new on your skin is a bullseye rash.

sn9 2y ago

For future reference, if you strongly suspect something specific and you have reason to believe your doctor is wrong in dismissing your concerns, you can double-check that they're following evidence-based best practices by looking up the issue on UpToDate. For example, you can look up Lyme disease and see how it should be tested and when it shouldn't be tested (for which there are very real reasons). It requires a fee to use, but it's not much compared to healthcare costs of missing a diagnosis. If you find they're being negligent, definitely print it out and show it to them or get a second opinion.