By Steve Bigham

Much is known about the physical ailments brought on by Lyme disease – the aches and pains, the headaches and fatigue – but few are aware of the damage this disease can do to your brain. Experts now say this disease has the capability of attacking the entire human body, head to toe.

At a forum in Newtown earlier this month, Dr Brian Fallon, associate professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University, discussed the neurological and psychiatric aspects of Lyme disease. Once virtually unrecognized, Lyme is reaching epidemic proportions; it is the second fastest growing infectious disease behind AIDS. What’s worse, few – including doctors – know all there is to know about treating Lyme disease.

Diagnosing Lyme disease may be the toughest part of all, Dr Fallon said. Like Syphilis before it, Lyme has become known as the “Great Imitator” or “Great Imposter,” appearing to be one of many other similar ailments. Most doctors might consider Lyme disease as the cause of sore joints and muscle symptoms. But what about someone suffering from memory loss, fits of rage, dementia, and ADD-like disorders? According to Dr Fallon, these also can be symptoms of Lyme disease.

“It’s almost like you need specialists just for Lyme disease because it does manifest itself in so many different ways,” noted Maggie Shaw, a member of the Newtown Lyme Disease Task Force, which organized the April 9 seminar.

Often, Lyme disease is misdiagnosed as something else, thereby delaying treatment and creating nightmares for those suffering with the symptoms. Lyme disease, when not treated in its early stages, can be disastrous.

“There are few symptoms which you shouldn’t consider, especially given that a quarter of the US population may be affected. More than 50 percent of chronically ill people may have Lyme contributing to their conditions,” noted Dr Joanne Whitaker, a Lyme disease researcher based in Florida, in a recent article in Alternative Medicine.

Lyme disease was first recognized in the United States in 1975 after a mysterious outbreak of arthritis near Lyme, Connecticut. In 1982 the spirochete that causes Lyme disease was discovered and subsequently named Borrelia burgdorferi. Lyme disease is spread from white-footed field mice and deer to deer ticks and eventually to humans.

Many of its victims are children, who may show symptoms affecting mood, thinking, and behavior. Infants can be born with it, or contract it through breastfeeding.

“The infection itself may have direct effects on the brain or indirect effects through the activation of the immune system, which produces substances that affect the brain,” Dr Fallon said.

Common psychiatric presentations in younger children include irritability and increased separation anxiety or other fears, according to Dr Fallon, who is a psychiatrist. In older children, mood swings and anxiety attacks are more common. Some physicians believe Lyme disease can be linked to chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia.

Lyme disease has become an epidemic in this area, according to members of the Newtown Lyme Disease Task Force, who fear that a lack of understanding and knowledge has served to heighten the problem.

Last summer, nearly a quarter of all deer ticks tested in Newtown carried Lyme disease. The task force is calling for improved education of the disease in school.

The Politics Of Lyme Disease

Disagreements within the medical establishment on the length of treatment of Lyme disease have further complicated the situation. In the absence of a definitive diagnostic test, physicians face a challenge in detecting the illness in its most curable state. Complications due to strain differences, co-infection, the particular genetics of an individual, varied immune responses, and the ability of the Lyme bacteria to survive antibiotic therapy compound treatment decisions.

Doctors who treat Lyme disease in ways other than the established “standard of care” are being scrutinized by the government. Many health insurance companies have denied coverage for long-term cases, a situation which has prompted Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumental to begin an investigation.

And, as Lyme Disease Foundation founder and president Karen Vanderhoof-Forschner points out, a lack of funding for research has only made efforts to eliminate Lyme disease that much harder.

 “The understanding of the disease is still in its infant stages. It was just discovered some 20 years ago,” Mrs Shaw explained. “The medical establishment goes by guidelines that are outdated. They say antibiotics for 3-4 weeks do the trick, but the bacteria does sometimes go into hard-to-reach areas.”

There is good news, however. Politicians and medical establishment leaders are starting to hear the cries of Lyme disease sufferers and those who treat them. At this month’s forum, several state politicians were on hand, as was Frank Kelly, CEO of Danbury Hospital.

For more information on Lyme disease, contact the National Lyme Disease Foundation at 800-886-LYME. Also, you can write to the Self Help Clearinghouse Lyme Disease Network for support information, and referrals for victims of Lyme disease and their families at Lyme Disease Network, 43 Winton Rd., East Brunswick, NJ 08816. Web site: www.lymenet.org.

Locally, those with questions can call 203-270-3301 or write the Newtown Lyme Disease Task Force, PO Box 56, Newtown, CT 06470. Email: NewtownLymeDiseaseTask Forece@juno.com.