Wow, another bacterial trigger for MS!

I just found this article about Bartonella triggering MS in a veterinarian and how he got better when he was treated for the Bart infection:

www.uvaldeleadernews.com/articles/2008/11/17/news/news1.txt

Lyme disease is spread via ticks, of course, and Bartonella is just one of the many co-infections that you can get with the Lyme disease because ticks can carry and spread many different diseases. I have both Lyme and Bart, plus Babesiosis and HME (Ehrlichiosis).

I thought I should share this article just in case it might help someone out there....

Yes, I'm one of those "Lymies", but I DO believe that autoimmune diseases (including MS) exist as separate entities in their own right. Not all cases of MS are due to Lyme disease, or Lyme co-infections like Bart, and even some cases of MS which were triggered by Lyme may not go away when the Lyme disease is treated. Because Lyme disease can both MIMIC and TRIGGER AI diseases such as MS, ALS, and lupus.

I do think that people who have been dx with an AI disease might do well to be tested for Lyme disease (and apparently Bart too!). Please keep in mind that Lyme is easily caught these days (you can catch it in your own backyard because of birds and other wildlife carrying the ticks everywhere).

Of course, there are probably many different triggers for MS, this is just one more.....

Thanks, Sarah, for the link to Dr. Breitschwerdt's paper. Of course, he's the researcher discussed in the article about the vet who had MS.

I should add this info for people who don't know: Bartonella can be transmitted by ticks, but is also called "cat scratch fever" or "cat scratch disease" because it can also be transmitted by your pet cat with just a scratch or a bite!