Hi all, I asked this question on another thread that I started but it deserves it's own I think so I'm bumping it up. I'm treating with Dr. J in SC. I've completed two cycles of ABX, taken a week off and now I'm in week two of my third cycle with a change in the regimen because Dr. J didn't think that we were hitting it hard enough with the first combo. The first was:
Minocin 100mg BID + Zithromax 500mg QD + Omnicef 300mg BID on MWF for three weeks, add Flagyl 500mg BID on Th and F of the third week, and take a week off.
Now I'm on Minocin 100mg BID + Rifobutin 150mg BID + Omnicef 600mg BID on MWF for three weeks, add Flagyl 500mg BID on W, Th and F of the third week, and take a week off.
During the first few days of the first week I had some pretty hard-core diarrhea that has since resolved. I also had a nice little burst of energy for the first few days before it faded and became my normal fatigue. Most noticeably, my joints and muscles are really aching. All of my usual achy places are aching even worse than usual and, as I read on a Bartonella thread, my back aches like I pulled muscles even though I haven't. I called and left a message for Dr. J to ask whether this was probably a herx reaction and his nurse called back to say yes but I didn't expect anything different. My safety labs also came back with my WBC a little low and AST and Monocytes a little high, but Dr. J wasn't concerned.
I'm very skeptical about my DX, the treatment, and, frankly, Dr. J. My wife and I are wondering - do ABX cause significant muscle and joint pain in the absence of infection? I.e., would all of these ABX be causing my knees, hips and back to hurt whether I was infected or not or does this only happen if one is infected?
Thanks.
jasrich