Lyme disease, and its potential treatment option – naltrexone!

What is Lyme disease?

Lyme disease is an infectious disease that is caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi. This bacteria is transferred to humans through a bite of an infected deer tick. The tick bears infection from feeding on deer, birds, and mice that are infected.

To transmit the infection, the tick has to remain on the skin for 36 hours at least. Numerous people having Lyme disease do not remember getting a tick bite.

People living in wooded areas recognized for transmission of Lyme disease are more vulnerable to this illness. People having domestic animals that graze in wooded areas are also at a higher risk of getting the disease.

Lyme disease stages

Lyme disease occurs in three stages:

● early localized

● early disseminated

● late disseminated

The manifestations that appear will depend on the stage of the disease. The progress of Lyme disease can differ from individual to individual. Some people might have it and not go through any symptoms in all three stages.

 Stage 1: Early localized disease

Symptoms of Lyme disease normally appear 1st two weeks following the tick bite. The bulls-eye rash is one of the earliest manifestations of the disease.

Usually, the rash appears at the location of the tick bite, as a red spot in the center encircled by a clear spot having a red area at the edge. It may feel warm when touched, but it doesn’t cause pain and itch. This rash slowly fades in most individuals.

The formal name for bulls-eye rash is erythema migrans. Erythema migrans is referred to as the main symptom of Lyme disease. But, most people don’t exhibit it. The occurs with or without flu-like or systemic viral symptoms.

Other symptoms usually observed in stage 1 of Lyme disease involve:

● chills

● fever

● enlarged lymph nodes

● sore throat

● vision changes

● fatigue

● muscle aches

● headaches

● Stage 2: Early disseminated Lyme disease

Early disseminated Lyme disease occurs after multiple weeks or months following the tick bite.

You’ll experience an overall feeling of being sick, and a rash might develop in areas different from the ones bitten by the tick.

This stage of Lyme disease is mainly characterized by confirmation of systemic infection, which indicates the infection has reached ]the whole body, including different organs.

Symptoms can involve:

● multiple erythema multiforme (EM) lesions

● disturbances in heart rhythm

● neurologic conditions

● cranial nerve palsies

● meningitis

The manifestations of stages 1 and 2 of Lyme disease can overlap.

● Stage 3: Late disseminated Lyme disease

Late disseminated Lyme disease occurs if the infection is left untreated in stages 1 and 2. This stage occurs in months to years following the tick bite.

This stage is defined by:

● arthritis affecting large joints

● brain disorders, like encephalopathy, which causes short-term memory loss, difficulty concentrating, mental fogginess, difficulties with understanding conversations, and sleep disorder

● numbness of the limbs

Lyme disease symptoms

People who get Lyme disease react differently to it, and their symptoms usually differ in severity.

Although the disease is generally divided into 3 stages

● early localized

● early disseminated

● late disseminated

Symptoms of these stages can overlap. Some individuals might present symptoms in a later stage of Lyme disease without experiencing those of an earlier stage.

Following are some of the symptoms that commonly occur in Lyme disease:

● a flat, round rash that appears like a bull’s-eye and red oval anywhere on the body

● fatigue

● muscle aches

● joint pain and swelling

● headache

● fever

● sleep disturbances

● swollen lymph nodes

● difficulty concentrating

Communicate with your doctor immediately in case you observe any of these symptoms.

Lyme disease symptoms in children

Children usually experience Lyme disease symptoms that are identical to adults.

Which usually include:

● fatigue

● fever

● joint and muscle pain

● other flu-like symptoms

These manifestations might appear soon after the transmission of infection, or they can months or even years.

Your kid might have the disease but not the bulls-eye rash. As confirmed by an early study, outcomes revealed that roughly 89% of children exhibited the rash.

Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) for Lyme Disease

Naltrexoneis a medicine, which was discovered in 1963 to inhibit opioid receptors. In 1984 naltrexonegot approved by the FDA for the treatment of alcohol and opiate dependence. At a 50-100mg dose, it obstructs opiate receptors and blocks the euphoric feeling of alcohol or narcotic drug misuse.

Low dose naltrexone (LDN) has been utilized in various conditions linked with dysregulation of the immune system since the 1980s. Doctors who have specialized in chronic Lyme disease found out that low-dose naltrexone (LDN) is efficient at enhancing the immune response related to Lyme disease.

Low dose naltrexone (LDN) is extremely helpful in Lyme disease. This cost-friendly drug can:

● improve pain,

● reduce autoimmune ailment induced by Lyme,

● decrease cytokine inflammation, and

● make the immune system better in function.

There are 3 processes by which low-dose naltrexone helps with pain in Lyme disease.

● One way LDN might ease the pain is by making the increased endorphins attach to a vaster number of more sensitive endorphin receptors. In simple words, an individual’s natural narcotics start working fine.

● LDN reduces cytokine inflammation,

● Low dose naltrexone inhibits Toll-like receptors to improve pain generated by nerves, which comprises fibromyalgia kind of pain.

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