actaully i also did it with my dog when he first arrived. he seemed to be bitten a lot and it would sooth it.... now not so much he must be getting used to the bugs here
- Thread starter dominicanrep
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Lyme disease in the DR?
actaully i also did it with my dog when he first arrived. he seemed to be bitten a lot and it would sooth it.... now not so much he must be getting used to the bugs here
I have never heard of this disease here.
I can't imagine that if a "deer tick", carrying the lyme disease somehow made it to this island that it would survive very long or that it would have any kind of breeding success to cause alarm.
Perhaps the tourist who did visit and had a dog in their lap, had lyme disease PRIOR to coming here.
I've known of people who have had it for years and never knew it, until one day they became tired, very tired, without any energy and went to see a doctor. This is the biggest problem with this disease... diagnosing when and where it was contracted.
BTW a deer tick is typically brown with a very small white spot on its back.
I can't imagine that if a "deer tick", carrying the lyme disease somehow made it to this island that it would survive very long or that it would have any kind of breeding success to cause alarm.
Perhaps the tourist who did visit and had a dog in their lap, had lyme disease PRIOR to coming here.
I've known of people who have had it for years and never knew it, until one day they became tired, very tired, without any energy and went to see a doctor. This is the biggest problem with this disease... diagnosing when and where it was contracted.
BTW a deer tick is typically brown with a very small white spot on its back.
When I was moving here with my dog my Vet looked up the island and it is Listed as a place that has lyme disease so we vaccinated my dog.
As I said, I never "heard" of this disease here (contracted), not to say that it doesn't exist.
There is the recluse spider here and it has very similiar effects/ symptoms that borreliosis does. It is easily confused.
There is the recluse spider here and it has very similiar effects/ symptoms that borreliosis does. It is easily confused.
B
BettyDiamond
Guest
Canada has one of the highest counts for lymes disease, so Im not sure why you are more worried about getting it in the Dominican Republic
Hey guys so, i was in the DR for a school trip, for the first few nights me and my roomate would wake up with our legs covered with spider and other bites, after we left about a half hour before we got back to toronto i began having a reaction and i was in teh tornonto hospital for two days, then i came back to Calgary and ended up being fine for a week, then the day before school started i had symptoms start up again and had what docs thought was a minor stroke because the left side of my face went limp which went away before i got to the hospital, so far my leg had swelled up like a ballon and i've been in and out of the hospital for four weeks now and no one can seem to figure out whats wrong, some of the docs here think its lyme disease but i was just wondering if anyone has had anything like this happen before, any imput would be greatly appriciated. Also i should mention that there was one bite that looked like someone stabbed my leg with two knitting needles.
PJT suspects your symptoms were the result of an insect bite that created a rash similar to the one that manifests itself when one is bitten by a lyme tick. The doctor's interest was to sooth your concern and begin a treatment for the rash whether it was lyme disease or not. If it was really diagnosed as lyme disease the doctor has a legal and ethical obligation to report the infectious disease event by law and regulation to the state. The state then shares the information with the CDC, Centers for Disease Control or WHO, World Heath Organization. You should ask the doctor, if he reported the incident, when, where, and to whom. His response to you will indicate if you were in fact a victim of lyme disease.
There are no advisories about lyme disease outbreaks in the DR from the CDC.
Good Health and Regards,
PJT
I have had Lyme's .. there is a blood test for it but it is not always definitive. As another poster said, we have not had information here about outbreaks but, of course, it is the interest of the tourist industry to NOT have Lyme's here so I would not put much stake in that. I mean, we already have sankies, and dengue, and the possibilty of malaria so imagine what Lyme's would do to our tourist business? And we need our tourist business.
I have not heard of Lyme's causing the sort of swelling that you have. But you should go to the Lyme' s disease site and read up on it.
The big bite that you describe does sound like a spider bite.
You may have had the bad luck to have BOTH....
Anyway, the best treatment for Lyme's is a month long course of antibiotics. But I am assuming that your docs know that, right? I mean Toronto and Calgary are hardly the back of the beyond. You will get better treatment from them than from a message board.I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on internet message boards.
My symptoms were first a very high fever, with the one bite site being red and swollen and getting progessively larger, then the appearance of other round, raised, sites. Then a severe and generalized aching in my joints. I only had about three hours of energy for a couple of months.
I was lucky enough to have a doctor who had done his internship in Lyme, Ct, where the disease was first encountered and he was very excited to see my bulls eye rash when I went to the emergency room. He had all the interns and resident's come in to look at it.
You may wish to check out some of the patient coalitions .. like this one Lyme Disease Network
The treatment for Lyme's is a month long course of tetracyclin.. and if that does not work, then you are put on an antibiotic drip.
If your docs have not put you on this regimin in Canada, where Lyme's is quite common, then I am figuring that they do not think it is Lyme's..
Back to the spider.
My vote is for a spider
and a very severe reaction
after all we do have very poisonour spiders here Tarantula spider bite: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia
Are you ok now?
Was the 2 needle looking bites on your swollen leg. That would of had to have been a big bite and the only things big enough to do that here in the DR are Centipedes or more likely since it's 2 marks that look like knitting needles a tarantula bite.
Were you staying in a hotel ( Resort ) ? if so which one and where in the DR. Did where the 2 knitting needle bites are get red and swollen and when did this bite occur at the beginning or end of the vacation. How long were you here for ?
About 5 years ago, when I was living fulltime in the DR, I developed a case of facial paralysis (Bell's Palsy). The neurologist said Bell's Palsy comes on for unknown reasons and will correct itself with time and referred me for physical therapy. I was shocked when I saw dozens of people being treated at the physical therapy clinic for facial nerve paralysis. This is normally not that common a finding in a random population. When I researched Bell's Palsy, I found that it is common symptom of Lyme Disease. At the time they weren't testing for Lyme in the DR. I went back to the US and had a positive test and received antibiotic treatment. I forwarded the results to the neurologist in the DR. I don't know if he followed up on it.
The Ugly Truth: Bugs and Their Bites - 3 - MSN Health - Skin and Hair Slide Show
here is a lovely gross picture of the standard Lyme's bite.. not always present but if you see this get to the doc right away to get antibiotics
here is a lovely gross picture of the standard Lyme's bite.. not always present but if you see this get to the doc right away to get antibiotics