NCSU / Galaxy Labs Bart Test

I've been doing a lot of research in the last week or two and I came across some articles about Dr. Breitschwerdt and his new Bart test and the fact that he feels many lyme infections are actually Bart that is why they are not cured because Bart needs specific antibiotics for months.

Has anyone used the Galaxy Labs test? How does lyme community feel about the test in general. it is very expensive, is it worth it?

I'm just curious. I has tested for Bart by MDL back when I first went to my LLMD and all came back negative. I had Rocephin a year ago followed by Amox & Doxy and was feeling much better until I stopped to Doxy 400mg). According to one of his articles, Doxy seems to be effective against bart, but you need a ton of it. i wonder it isn't bart I'm fighting.

Post Edited (Daxwell) : 11/17/2014 12:43:30 PM (GMT-7)

My symptoms are all peripheral nervous issues. My feet are burning, I have muscle twitching, my skin is hypersensitive to the point that what clothes I wear is a big deal. and putting my hands in my pockets if I wear jeans can be painful. When I had the Rocephin a year ago my whole body was burning and my muscles were twitching everywhere, now it is mostly my calves and sometimes my thighs. I did get a lot better, although never 100%. My LLMD ruled out Bart from go and said I have Babesia. I never agreed since I never had any symptom of babesia.

I am starting rocephin again on Friday, just got the call from the nursing service to schedule a midline insertion, Now I'm waiting to hear from infuserve that they go the Rx.

I just made an email with some articles by Dr. Breitschwerdt to forward to my Dr to see if he will consider bart if the rocephin doesn't work.

This is from his research that was published in Parasites and vectors:
Her serum was variably seroreactive to several Bartonella sp. antigens. Despite symptomatic improvement, six months of doxycycline most likely failed to eliminate the B. henselae infection,

The backslide was devastating to me. I had a pretty good summer. i was able to go on with my life pretty normally, with the exception of carbs. I was able to wear most of my clothes and go out to dinner, etc... When I had the setback, it wasn't as bad as when i started treatment, but it felt just as bad to me.

I will definitely ask him, but doesn't want taking anything else while on the IV. I will probably take some flagyl anyway, since I have some. maybe the 2nd week as a cyst buster. Like everyone else, I'm just getting sick & tired of being sick and tired.

I'm not sure why no orals along with the IV. It was the same last year when I was on the IV, he had me stop with the oral - Bactrim DS as the time. I guess I can try to find the houttuynia tea. Hopefully Traveler will chime in with where she buys hers.

I'm just so torn about taking the 3 sample Galaxy test but the cost is $1,440. My insurance would reimburse me for some, but it will still cost me almost $600 out of pocket. It seems like the test is very accurate based on their literature, and knowing would give me great peace of mind, but if it's negaive, then I will feel like I wasted a lot of money. it's just so confusing.

I think it is clinical because their are no reliable tests. If there were reliable tests, this wouldn't be such a controversial disease. I am leaning on being willing to spend the money on the test because if it comes back positive, I will be covered for necessary treatment and based on Dr. Breitschwerdt's articles, it seems like proper treatment is a few months long.

I will not be seeing my doc until Dec 3 so I definitely won't be doing the test before then. i will discuss it with him, let him read the articles and get his opinion. He will do it if I ask, but I would like to know if he thinks its a waste of money or not. Also, if the reocephin works wonders, then it might not be necessary.

Utahgirl, we've had quite a conversation. i can't believe that nobody else on the board is either familiar with the test, or has an opinion about it.

Traveler,

Here are some of the links to information on the new Bart test:

www.cvm.ncsu.edu/news/2012-05-04-Uncovering-Bartonella-the-Stealth-Pathogen.html

www.northcarolinahealthnews.org/2013/12/05/bartonella-is-everywhere-so-why-dont-we-know-more-about-it/

www.onehealthinitiative.com/publications/Breitschwerdt%20J%20Neuroparasitol%20Review%202012.pdf


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3637287/


galaxydx.com/web/pdfs/hhtestoptions.pdf


All of the links aren't working, I don't know why but if you copy and past them you will get to the right places.


It sounds like the doctor lost his father to an un-diagnosed Bart infection. based on what I read, it seems to me that he believes that some people being treated for Lyme might actually have Bart and that is the cause of treatment failure.

Post Edited (Daxwell) : 11/17/2014 12:38:02 PM (GMT-7)

So now I have a few weeks to decide whether or not to try this 3 day test. I haven't been on any meds specifically for Bart like rifampin or clarithromycin . It is my understanding that many abx will work for bart temporarily but to actually cure it you need combination therapy for a minimum of 6 weeks, probably 3 months.

I will ask for Rifampin on my next visit. I really doubt my llmd will give me a Rx for it. about 2 months into treatment I asked him about Bart because I have always had burning and tenderness in my feet and shins. I read on these boards that these are classic bart symptoms. He dismissed me and told me I have babs even though I tested negative for that too. I had a blood smear for babs so I'm pretty sure I don't have it.

I think sometimes llmd's just add bart or babs as clinical diagnosis because you 'must' have at least one co-infection.

Out of curiosity I contacted Galaxy Labs to find out how many strains they test for. This was their answer:

Our genus-level PCR primers pick up at least 7 species/strains of Bartonella which grow in our proprietary enrichment medium (BAGPM).

It's not as many species/strains as I was expecting. The also pointed me to this research, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3358077/.

They discuss some of the symptoms, and that many people who self reported that they were positive for Lyme disease (which could mean clinical diagnosis) tested positive for different species of bartonella.

Hornet,
At my worst, I had many symptoms, but the main ones are the ones listed above. Three weeks into my Rocephin I was at my all time worst. I was on for only 4 weeks. When it was time to pull the line or decide to pay for it out of pocket, I couldn't wait for them to pull the line. Then, over the next few weeks, I started to feel a little better each day. Now, in hindsight I wish that I had another 2-4 weeks of the rocephin. I didn't believe in herxes until after I realized that i had one.

I am actually going back on the IV tomorrow night. It's kind of creepy that I'm actually looking forward to this, but I am. I'm at about 75% now. I was at about 90% over the summer. I'm hoping that the rocephin will be the kick in the ass this bacteria needs to die-off. My Rx is for 4 weeks, but since I'm paying this time out of pocket, I'm going to ask my doc to extend it to 6 weeks. the cost is actually kind of reasonable.

After this treatment, I will ask him for Rifampin and maybe zithromax. I haven't been on either yet.