Eli5: Why is there such a big controversy about the existence of chronic lyme infections?
In: Biology
A lot of it is mostly in the experimental treatment part. Cefuroxime (+ variants), doxycycline (+ variants), and amoxicillin (+ variants) are the established oral antibiotics used to treat it. Onøy antibiotics have had a proven effect. IV ceftriaxone is the big boi. The contention and disagreements, and dangers, is the dosages. Highly experimental treatments give doses that are incredibly high, which increases injury and resistance risks to a point where the overall scientific community deems unacceptable given the current information we have on the efficacy, outcome, and risk factors of such treatments.
Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome is the name given to patients who feel many of the symptoms of Lyme Disease, but have no signs of current infection. This is where the alternate medicine area has gotten a bit of a foothold. Advocating for extremely high doses of antibiotics and natural remedies with only circumstantial or highly biased evidence, or no evidence at all, that it has any effect whatsoever.
Lars Monsen, a famous Norwegian outdoorsman, recieved experimental cocktails of high dose antibiotics in Germany, because the Norwegian Department of Health refused to provide it. He recieved the established treatment, was tested and cleared of infection, but he still had some symptoms, which is why he went to Germany for this experimental treatment.
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