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Does this look like a bullseye rash?

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Posted 6/12/2019 11:23 PM (GMT 0)
Hi guys,

I'd appreciate feedback on the photo I posted below. I just moved to Phoenix, AZ last week. The first week here I received several bug bites and was itching like crazy. Last Wednesday I noticed a rash on my inner left arm that looked somewhat like a bullseye rash. It's lighter than a lot of pictures of confirmed bullseye rashes that I have seen, but I am still rather worried. The rash disappeared in a couple days and is no longer visible. Today I woke up with pain in my left elbow. I have also been experiencing back pain but I am sleeping on a new mattress.

I have scheduled a dermatology appointment for tomorrow. I plan to show the doctor this picture, but I am curious to get any opinions people have here.

VIEW IMAGE
Posted 6/13/2019 12:22 AM (GMT 0)
The link doesn't work for me.

"Google

404. That’s an error.

The requested URL was not found on this server. That’s all we know."
Posted 6/13/2019 12:25 AM (GMT 0)
Oh, thanks for letting me know! Hopefully this link will work

VIEW IMAGE
Posted 6/13/2019 2:17 AM (GMT 0)

Milabw said...
Oh, thanks for letting me know! Hopefully this link will work

VIEW IMAGE

Yes it works!
And I see a bullseye rash!!

It’s a recent bite and EM - get to a Dr and get doxycycline 200 mg twice daily. I recommend that you Try and get two weeks (or more) worth.
Then go to another Dr and get another prescription for a few weeks of doxy.

You will need to treat until symptoms are GONE and a few weeks longer.

From dr burrascano lyme guidelines;

EARLY LOCALIZED - Single erythema migrans with no constitutional symptoms:

Adults: oral therapy- must continue until symptom and sign free for at least one month,
with a 6 week minimum

Do not let this go chronic - you have a really good chance of knocking this out NOW and not suffering for years !!

After you get some doxy - try to find a LLMD and get an appt - tell them you have a recent tick bite and want to treat it promptly.
If they don’t have anything in the next few weeks - see if you can be called if there’s a cancellation.

Doxy dosage from guidelines:

*Doxycycline- Adults: 200 mg bid with food; doses of up to 600 mg daily are often
needed, as doxycycline is only effective at high blood levels. Not for children or in pregnancy.
Posted 6/13/2019 2:41 AM (GMT 0)
It also appears to be a bullseye rash to me, though that part of the photo is a bit out-of-focus.

Here are some links to supporting information, should it be helpful:

https://www.ilads.org/patient-care/ilads-treatment-guidelines
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1586/14787210.2014.940900?needaccess=true
https://www.ilads.org/research-literature/lyme-disease-basics-for-providers
https://www.cdc.gov/lyme/signs_symptoms/rashes.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/erythema_migrans

Best of luck, Milabw!

Dude
Posted 6/13/2019 3:48 AM (GMT 0)
Thank you for your replies! I just found a tick on my dog so there definitely appears to be a tick problem in my household. I will work on getting antibiotics tomorrow.
Posted 6/13/2019 4:27 AM (GMT 0)
You may wish to invest a small amount of money in a few Tick Twister tools:

https://www.google.com/search?q=tick+twister

Keep one at home, one in your car, and maybe in a purse, suitcase, cosmetic bag, etc.

If you save the tick, you can search online for laboratories that will test it for pathogens. I'd also mention it to your veterinarian. In many cases, I believe animals get more prompt and serious attention than humans.
Posted 6/13/2019 5:48 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you for the suggestion on the tick twister!

The dermatologist prescribed doxycycline 100 mg twice a day for two weeks. I wish the dose was higher, but I'm only 4' 11' and weigh 91 lbs so hopefully that will be a strong enough dose for me.

I'm now trying to get an appointment with a primary care doctor for today. I'd really like to get a blood test before I start the antibiotics.

I also called a nephropathy clinic with lyme literate practitioners, but wow are they expensive, and I was told they treat it with supplements and I don't want to go down that path.
Posted 6/13/2019 5:55 PM (GMT 0)

Milabw said...
Thank you for the suggestion on the tick twister!

The dermatologist prescribed doxycycline 100 mg twice a day for two weeks. I wish the dose was higher, but I'm only 4' 11' and weigh 91 lbs so hopefully that will be a strong enough dose for me.

I'm now trying to get an appointment with a primary care doctor for today. I'd really like to get a blood test before I start the antibiotics.

I also called a nephropathy clinic with lyme literate practitioners, but wow are they expensive, and I was told they treat it with supplements and I don't want to go down that path.

Re: blood test. Do you mean a lyme test?
Just an FYI - the bullseye rash IS lyme disease. (not sure if you already knew this)

The test could take a week or longer for results....and you really don't want to wait.
Plus, there's a good chance it will be negative anyway.


Yah - since you're so light...hopefully that 100 mg dosage will be high enough.
I've always wondered why a 250 lb man is prescribed the same dose of antibiotics as me (I was under 130 lbs when I first started treatment)

I do hope you can get into a LLMD before your 2 weeks of doxy is finished.
Posted 6/13/2019 6:22 PM (GMT 0)
Oh yah, I 100% believe that it is lyme disease. I want to get a blood test before I start the antibiotics because my understanding is that antibiotics will most likely mask the bacteria if you take a test post-antibiotic exposure.

I understand I might not test positive either way, but I want to have the best chance of getting tested before any medicine has a chance to mask it. I feel like I will have a better chance of getting taken seriously by doctors if I can get a positive test.

Either way, I will start the antibiotics this evening and continue to look for LLMD.
Posted 6/13/2019 7:22 PM (GMT 0)

Milabw said...
Oh yah, I 100% believe that it is lyme disease. I want to get a blood test before I start the antibiotics because my understanding is that antibiotics will most likely mask the bacteria if you take a test post-antibiotic exposure.

I understand I might not test positive either way, but I want to have the best chance of getting tested before any medicine has a chance to mask it. I feel like I will have a better chance of getting taken seriously by doctors if I can get a positive test.

Either way, I will start the antibiotics this evening and continue to look for LLMD.

I understand - it is somewhat comforting (?) to have a positive test result to back up your clinical diagnosis.
I do believe that it can take several weeks though for your antibodies to 'show up' in order to pull a positive WB.
But, no harm in trying...the Igenix Lyme WB IgM and IgG costs a total of $250 - that's if you're wanting to test with a lab that specializes in tick-borne disease testing.
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