Treating Lyme Disease

Treating Lyme disease with antibiotics alone is not enough for many patients. Unlike most traditional physicians, the Lyme literate practitioners at our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee have the experience and training to understand the complexities of this often-misunderstood disease.

The ambiguous symptoms of Lyme disease, along with inaccurate tests, lead to misdiagnoses like fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome. Even when patients receive an accurate diagnosis, treating Lyme disease is often limited to an antibiotic regimen that is typically only effective for patients in the early stages of Lyme disease. Sometimes, even early-stage patients will continue to have problems after antibiotic treatment.

Our practitioners believe in treating Lyme disease with a multi-functional approach

When treating Lyme disease, it is crucial to address the patient’s immune system. Borrelia, the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, may be embedded deep within cells, brain tissue and cartilage, making it resistant to antibiotics. In addition, the bacteria can have a devastating effect on a patient’s immune system, leading to other health issues over time.

Practitioners who are treating Lyme disease also need to understand a substance called biofilm and its relationship to coinfections. Bacteria forms a substance called biofilm that attaches itself to cells and spreads throughout the body. When left untreated, biofilm can affect patients who already have a compromised immune system. Lack of immunity allows biofilm to spread more readily and contribute to coinfections such as gastrointestinal problems and skin conditions associated with Lyme disease.

Our treatment methods address the whole patient, not just the Lyme disease symptoms.

In addition to prescribing antibiotics, if appropriate, our practitioners employ a multi-step program when treating Lyme disease.

• Address the patient’s immune system. At our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee, we understand that a patient with Lyme disease cannot thrive with a compromised immune system. We employ several therapies to help boost a patient’s immunity so that the body can fight the borrelia bacteria.
  • IV nutritional therapy
  • Vitamins and supplements
• Reduce inflammation. The human body develops inflammation in response to infections such as Lyme disease. Inflammation can cause chronic pain and weaken the immune system. When treating Lyme disease, we employ Ondamed therapy, Thermography, LET (Lymph Enhancement Therapy) and Ultrasound Therapy to reduce problematic inflammation.
• Treat related health problems and coinfections. Many traditional physicians do not understand that patients with Lyme disease often develop coinfections that contribute to their chronic pain and ill health. At our functional medicine clinic, we consider the patient’s overall health and actively look for issues such as gastrointestinal and skin issues. We also test for and treat tick-borne coinfections and other illnesses.
• Our providers are highly trained Lyme disease practitioners, treating Lyme disease with every tool in our arsenal.

Contact our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee for an appointment.

Diagnosing Lyme Disease

The Lyme literate practitioners at our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee have years of experience diagnosing Lyme disease. We’ve helped many patients who have been struggling with debilitating health issues that were never properly diagnosed or treated. Our approach to diagnosing Lyme disease and other tick-borne infections is much more comprehensive than the methods that traditional medicine and many integrative medicine clinics use.

Diagnosing Lyme disease with a detective’s eye and medical expertise

Diagnosing Lyme disease can be a challenge, but our medical detective team is on the case. The practitioners at our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee leave no stone unturned when searching for tick-borne diseases. Our years of experience tell us that every person fighting Lyme disease is unique, and the only way to improve their quality of life is to look at the whole person and examine several aspects of their health.

We employ several diagnostic tools in our search for answers

For traditional medicine providers, diagnosing Lyme disease usually begins with two tests, the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test and the IFA test. According to LymeDisease.org, these tests fail to diagnose Lyme disease 56% of the time.¹ Our experience tells the team at our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee that an accurate diagnosis is only possible when we employ a variety of tests and methods.

• IGeneX testing with the Western blot test, immunoblot and I-testing. These tests are more accurate than the tests conventional medicine uses for diagnosing Lyme disease. These assays are sensitive enough to detect early and late stage Lyme disease, even though antibodies are often low during these stages of the condition.
• Ondamed is one of the alternative therapies we use to help our Lyme literate practitioners identify coinfections and parasitic diseases. This unique, non-invasive technology scans the patient’s body in conjunction with biofeedback to help identify inflammation and infections.
• Thermography is another non-invasive alternative therapy that we use for diagnosing Lyme disease. Thermographic imaging employs digital infrared thermal imaging (DITI) to map differences in the body’s skin temperature. Subtle temperature changes indicate potential areas of inflammation and injury.

Our practitioners also use Ondamed and thermography for treating Lyme disease.

Our Lyme literate practitioners understand the complexities of Lyme disease

Lyme disease is known as the great imitator because the symptoms of Lyme disease often mimic other diseases such as chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis and depression. Our practitioners go above and beyond when diagnosing Lyme disease to ensure that patients receive an accurate diagnosis.

Provider experience matters with Lyme disease, and our practitioners not only have years of experience, but they have also trained with nationally recognized experts. Debra Muth ND received her training from Richard I. Horowitz MD who is renowned for his knowledge about Lyme disease. Daniel Cameron MD, a nationally acclaimed leader in the field, trained our physician, Greg Brown MD. Amy Hoffman, NP. Sharon O’Neill, NP.

Contact us for an appointment at our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee.

¹ https://www.lymedisease.org/lyme-basics/lyme-disease/diagnosis/

Symptoms Of Lyme Disease

The symptoms of Lyme disease fool many patients and doctors, but not the Lyme literate practitioners at our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee. Debra Muth ND and her team are experts in the diagnosis and treatment of this evasive condition. They work with a team of skilled professionals to implement individualized treatment programs that help patients get their lives back.

Many patients dismiss early symptoms of Lyme disease

The early symptoms of Lyme disease that occur within the first 30 days after a tick bite are vague and flu-like. Patients often disregard the way they feel, assuming it’s due to a virus, allergies or some other problem that will go away on its own. In addition, the deer ticks, or black-legged ticks on the West Coast of the U.S., that transmit the bacterium that causes Lyme disease are very tiny, and a person may not realize that he or she has a tick bite.

Here are early symptoms of Lyme disease that patients should be aware of.

• Fever
• Chills
• Sweats
• Headache
• Fatigue
• Body and muscle aches
• Lyme disease rash

One of the most discussed symptoms of Lyme disease is the erythema migrans (EM) rash. It often looks like a bull’s eye. It may also appear as a solid, red rash. The rash may feel warm, but it doesn’t typically feel itchy or painful. About 20-30% of patients develop this rash any time from three to 30 days after receiving a bite.

Untreated Lyme disease causes more severe symptoms

The patients we see at our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee often seek our help after months or even years of suffering from the symptoms of Lyme disease. Many people are told they have multiple sclerosis, psychiatric issues, fibromyalgia or other illnesses. Here are the symptoms that may appear in various body systems when the disease is left untreated.

• Neurological symptoms, including balance problems, dizziness, tremors, foggy thinking, short-term memory issues, blurry or double vision, numbness, burning sensations, severe headaches and Bell’s Palsy, which causes the face to droop or lose muscle tone.
• Musculoskeletal symptoms, including stiff neck, severe pain or swelling in the joints, and muscle pain.
• Cardiac symptoms are rare, but can include Lyme carditis, an irregular heartbeat or heart palpitations, a heart block or murmur, and heart valve prolapse.
• Pulmonary symptoms, including shortness of breath, chest pain and soreness in the ribs.
• Gastrointestinal symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, constipation, diarrhea, bladder problems and gastritis.
• Neuropsychiatric symptoms, including depression, sleep problems and panic attacks.

Patients should consult our Lyme literate practitioners even if they feel like their symptoms of Lyme disease are diminishing. Untreated, this condition remains in the body and can cause serious problems over time.

Our Lyme literate practitioners recognize the symptoms of Lyme disease

At our functional medicine clinic near Milwaukee, our staff examines many patients with Lyme disease. Experience and training make us more effective than the average practice at recognizing the symptoms of Lyme disease. Don’t take chances with your health by ignoring potential problems.

Contact us for an appointment.