Lyme...bulls eye rash...spider bites?

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spider solo

spider solo

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I did a search here and saw the post of the various rashes from the Lyme tick.
Found a match.
Monday I go for a 2nd doctor opinion.

a bit of history
2 weeks ago I
noticed the rash while on a cruise ship of all places.
Went to their doctor who was indeed familar with at least the name of Lyme disease etc.
(I also photographed it just in case).

The doc said their were many bites that would produce the bulls eye rash.
A big part of the diagnosis was the lack of flu like symptoms, and it was only mildly sensitive.
He figured it was a spider bite.

So the big question is.. are there indeed any New England spiders that would leave the famous bulls eye rash??

Or for that matter if I was bit on board the ship (Boston to Bermuda)

and yes, of course, I was bush whacking here in NH the morning (and yard work the precedding days) before I got on board

Any Ideas?
 
lyme, lyme, lyme

I was diagnosed w/ a spider bite and treated w/ 5 days of antibiotics and returned to health in 5 days. 5days later I was sick again. Being that I suspected Lyme, I went back to get the 21 treatment and really recovered.

I'd go w/ the Lyme treatment and if it's a spider bite it'll be healed as well.

Wish you well! :)
 
Last edited:
a quick google seems to indicate venomous spiders bites can create a bulls-eye, but I'd go with the Lyme. Find a Doc that "believes" and get the 14 or 20 day 'script, not the standard 10 day, especially if you're experiencing migranes. Frig It; tell the Doc you've migranes and the rash and demand the longer 'script. What's the risk ?
 
well the doc did put me on the 21 days of antibiotic.

(No one could seem to come up with a spider that would duplicate the bulls eye rash here in southern Nh)

The photo proved to be the deciding factor.

seems being allergic to penicillan (sp?) and other related ones could work against me on this treatment.

Doc said to expect to be nauseous with this med...time will tell ... I'm headed out for a 4 days of kayak camping tomorrow A.M. either way.

How's that sayin go..." don't roll the dice if you can't pay the price..." ?
 
DougPaul said:
Antibiotics are not risk-free.

Doug
Click to expand...

I can attest to that, almost lost my liver to an antibiotic, which I had an allergic reaction to. It was not a fun time. For that matter, every drug, antibiotics included, pose some degree of risk, some more than others. I guess for each situation you have to analyze the risks of taking something or not.
 
Go for the longer regimen and be rid of the Lyme (PITA that it is...)

Three of the four of us in my family have had it...only my 8-year-old son has been spared to date, and with all our outdoor activities, it's probably only a matter of time for him.

I got it about 7-8 years ago, and didn't even realize it for about a week, since I chalked up the symptoms to my annual summer cold, which I used to get, like clockwork, once every summer.

Well, this time, it didn't go away after a couple four days or so and I felt like death-on-a-cracker. Fortunately, my wife spotted the bulls-eye rash -- ON MY BUTT -- when I was getting out of the shower one morning.

A quick trip to the E-room, a 'scrip for some antibiotics and I was feeling MUCH better, and quickly. Like, in about 12-15 hours I was about 80% of what classifies as normal for me...
 
From my experience -

I have had lyme disease a couple of times and when I took the treatment (21days of Doxy), I was cured - no flare-ups. The "flare-ups" that you are referring to may be related to when one doesn't treat it fairly close to exposure??
 
I've been treated for it twice but probably only had it once. There should be no flare-ups. If there are, you've still got it. Longer term untreated Lyme can be treated but it might require more drastic steps, like IV antibiotics.
 
B the Hiker said:
My friend just got Lyme disease. Question for those who have it: how often does it flare up--or do you always notice it?
Click to expand...
Lyme disease has initial symptoms and then becomes dormant. It can reemerge after a number of years and cause a range of very nasty damage. So don't ignore it just because the initial symptoms went away.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lyme_disease
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/Lyme/
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/lymedisease.html

An internet search on lyme disease will bring up lots more.

Doug
 
Thanks for those links, Doug. I especially enjoyed learning about MELISA. One of the biggest challenges in Lyme diagnoses is elucidating active infection from immune response AKA antibody formation. New diagnostic tools will help identify infected patients from those who have simply seroconverted (meaning developed antibodies in response to an exposure like a well functioning immune system should!)
This will hopefully reduce the overuse of antibiotics, but for now, they seem to be the most conservative course of action.
 
Thank you all for the links and the comments. My friend was wiped for a few days, but I saw her yesterday and she seemed fine, although she's only seven days into the treatment.
 
spider solo said:
I did a search here and saw the post of the various rashes from the Lyme tick.
Found a match.
Monday I go for a 2nd doctor opinion.

a bit of history
2 weeks ago I
noticed the rash while on a cruise ship of all places.
Went to their doctor who was indeed familar with at least the name of Lyme disease etc.
(I also photographed it just in case).

The doc said their were many bites that would produce the bulls eye rash.
A big part of the diagnosis was the lack of flu like symptoms, and it was only mildly sensitive.
He figured it was a spider bite.

So the big question is.. are there indeed any New England spiders that would leave the famous bulls eye rash??

Or for that matter if I was bit on board the ship (Boston to Bermuda)

and yes, of course, I was bush whacking here in NH the morning (and yard work the precedding days) before I got on board

Any Ideas?
Click to expand...

Where was/is the rash?
 
The rash lasted about a week (right front shoulder above the armpit).
You wouldn't think that would be much of a blind spot, but apparently it is. I thought I had a touch of poision ivy the 1st couple of days.

I have about 5 more days of meds. Looking forward to being done with them.
...also going to take a closer look at some tick repelent 'Buzz Off ' type clothing in the future...
 
spider solo said:
The rash lasted about a week (right front shoulder above the armpit).
You wouldn't think that would be much of a blind spot, but apparently it is. I thought I had a touch of poision ivy the 1st couple of days.

I have about 5 more days of meds. Looking forward to being done with them.
...also going to take a closer look at some tick repelent 'Buzz Off ' type clothing in the future...
Click to expand...

OK, interesting. Just as an FYI, I had a circular rash on my ankle, just about at the sock line that I thought might be Lyme. I hike a lot and trail run where there are tons of deer. Anyway, doc took a biopsy and it turned out to be fungle. Just something to keep in mind.
 
when you know you know!

In June of 2001 my knees started aching, followed by my neck then the really bad flu symptoms. I went to a Beth Israel walk in clinic in NYC and told the doctor that i had been hiking a lot in Harriman State park recently and that i was pretty sure it was Lyme.
Because i had no bullseye rash the doctor insistently thought i had an std and grilled me on my sexual orientation and habits! She then ordered blood work for all types of std's but not Lyme telling me that if in a week or so the blood tests come back negative then we will take a Lyme tider, after a bit of grumbling i agreed. The tests came back negative and i came back and gave more blood, another week or so later the doctor called and said "wow great detective work....you do have Lyme" i was put onto a 21 day course of doxy and after the first week the bells palsey(facial paralysis) kicked in....tons of fun with drool, sandwiches and straws.
Since then i have had problems with my joints, feet, etc.....i feel that if i had been given the antibiotics when i first came in instead of 20 days later things may have been different.
 
Charlos, I'm sorry. Truly. It is a sad state of affairs.

I have a running, joyful understanding, line of humor with my DVM..... that I'd love to transfer my own personal medical records to his Veterinary Practice.

He got a clue about a Tick Borne Illness in my dog in 10 minutes, in office, via SNAAP 3 from Idexx labs. A few CC's of blood and BINGO!

To diagnose me with the same microfilarae within in the human public heath setting would be impossible.

HMMM. How can this be so hard?

Good wishes to you

breeze
 
Breeze said:
Charlos, I'm sorry. Truly. It is a sad state of affairs.

I have a running, joyful understanding, line of humor with my DVM..... that I'd love to transfer my own personal medical records to his Veterinary Practice.

He got a clue about a Tick Borne Illness in my dog in 10 minutes, in office, via SNAAP 3 from Idexx labs. A few CC's of blood and BINGO!

To diagnose me with the same microfilarae within in the human public heath setting would be impossible.

HMMM. How can this be so hard?

Good wishes to you

breeze
Click to expand...
Thanks Breeze, yeah i wish i could see the vet sometimes....get some front-line maybe a lyme vaccine, wouldn't that be nice.
Until that other life i have been using permethrin, wearing long pants tucked in, checking myself alot and all that as well as moving out of the city and finding some good doctors.
One thing i wanted to mention that i think was brought up in this thread....permethrin is very bad for felines!
 
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