Phrenic nerve stimulation for breathing

Hi, my hubby was diagnosed with Lyme last July and has been doing a series of antibiotics thru pulsing until he developed pneumonia a month ago. He was ambulatory but has been on and off a vent and now has a trach. Of course the Drs want to call his neuro-muscular disorder everything but Lyme. He get a little stronger everyday but being in a hospital for a month is horrible.

Anyway, the Drs are suggesting a "pacemaker" for his phrenic nerve to stimulate his diaphragm to allow him to come off vent. The Borellia is in his brain stem and has affected his bulbar swallowing function. No idea how long he has had Lyme but we live on a community with many deer.

Has anyone had this procedure? Does it work? Our quality of life has changed so dramatically. With this procedure he won't be vent dependent even for part of the time but all these decisions are coming at us fast and furious. Tx!!!!

Thank you for the articles. I am in close contact with my Lyme dr and seeking his advice and guidance before we go forward. As you know the medical community lacks a deep understanding of Lyme in its many presentations and therefore prescribes meds and procedures which may be inappropriate.

Thanks for all that info, Traveler.  I have seen a pulmonologist several times for a diagnosis of why I couldn't breathe and after having the pulmonary function test (PFT) I was diagnosed with emphysema.  I had mega mucous along with the difficulty breathing and stated to the dr. that he has to think outside the box because this came on extremely fast.  CAT scan of my lungs were clear.  I even went so far as having oxygen delivered to my house.  I told several doctors that it felt as if my diaphragm was partially paralyzed but it fell on deaf ears.  With antibiotic treatment this has gotten better.  I just printed out your info and I WILL be taking it to the pulmonologist.....if I ever have to see him again.

Patty

Wow, Summer16! Thank you for all your kinds words! I'm just really happy that I can be of help!! I spent too many years not being able to think, much less being able to think outside the box!! LOL! I know how frustrating all of this can be, and I hope to bring research (proof) to those that are having trouble finding what they need to get the help they need!

Thank you!

The best way to answer that is to copy and paste a part of an article from Prof. Garth Nicholson, from the Townsend Letter dated April of 2007 - crud!! Now the link won't work!! ACK!! Okay, so you will have to go here:
www.immed.org/illness/treatment_considerations.html
Scroll down to the bottom of the page. Under the heading "Reports", you will see the third link down, titled " Diagnosis and therapy of chronic systemic co-infections in Lyme Disease and other tick-borne infectious diseases, by Prof. Garth Nicolson, Townsend Lett. Doctors 2007; 285: 93-98"

Well, my computer is at it again and won't allow me to copy and paste, so here goes. (are we having fun yet??? ) I'm sure I'll miss a word or two, but this is some pretty important info and worth doing this:
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" We and others have found that the most common co-infections with Bb are various species of Mycoplasma. Approximately 60 - 75% of LD patients also have Mycoplasma co-infections ( Mycoplasma fermentans >Mycoplasma hominis > Mycoplasma pnuenomiae, M. genitalium, M. penetrans, other species). In some cases multiple Mycoplasmal infections are present in LD patients. The presence of Mycoplasmal infections complicates the diagnosis and treatment of LD, and some of the generalized signs/symptoms found in Borrelia positive patients are found in Mycoplasma positive patients.

Like the Bb spirochete, Mycoplasmas are found at the intracellular locations in various tissues and are only rarely found free in the blood. This can make detection difficult, and, in some patients, the appearance of Bb and various Mycoplasmas in the white blood cells can be cyclic. We recommend testing for Mycoplasmal infections in LD, using the most sensitive PCR procedures to detect DNA in the white blood cells...."
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Okay, me again~

Prof. Nicholson believes that basically Doxy can get rid of a Mycoplasma infection, as can be seen at the bottom right corner of page 3 of the pdf. (although on the paper itself it reads 95)

Prof. Nicholson also believes that Mycoplasma infections are common for those in the military.

Whew! I hope that helps some!