Very interesting article on strep as a "sleeper"

[matis_mom]

I googled "lyme disease strep" and I found this article. I'm pasting the relavant paragraphs, but follow the link if you wan the full article.

 

I think this may be the key of our kids' problems with strep.

 

I wonder what exactly the mean at the end when they mention the "treatment altered form"... anyone???

 

http://www.encyclomedia.com/lyme_disease.html

 

 

Sleeper:

One of the sleeping antigens that is very hard to measure is streptococcus. It has been well established that the toxins from streptococci, as well as those from mycoplasmas, have an affinity for joints. We have found in the course of taking comprehensive histories of our patients that a tremendous number of them have had severe troubles with their sinuses or their tonsils or their ears, or have had scarlet fever or rheumatic fever-all streptococcal conditions. Strep is an organism that is very susceptible to penicillin, which is why rheumatic fever and scarlet fever are no longer the terrible menaces they were a generation ago. But even after it has been knocked out as a source of infection, streptococcus hangs on for years-in tonsils, around teeth, and in other hiding places-not causing infection, but serving as another source of antigen, or toxin, with that demonstrated specificity for joints.

 

In treating rheumatoid arthritis, when a physician gets to the point with tetracycline therapy that the mycoplasmas have been substantially reduced and further progress appears to be limited, it makes sense to probe the possibility that streptococcus is complicating the process. If a titer of streptococcal antibodies indicates that their levels are elevated, then both the mycoplasma and the strep can be treated at the same time, continuing tetracycline for the former and using ampicillin for the latter.

 

Nothing about rheumatoid arthritis is simple, and it doesn't necessarily stop there; the streptococcus often alters its form, which further compounds the problem. Treatment of the strep then takes one kind of medication, and treatment of the altered form requires yet another.

[michele]

I have had rheumatoid arhtritis since I was sick at age 30 with strep. My daughter got scarlet fever the same time with strep. Currently my RA is out of remission and I am on a z pack for a sinus infection, predisone, plaquinel, shots of enbrel weekly and methothrexate. My inflammation markers keep increasing. I am thinking it is stress related. I don't know what the tie is to my sons PANDAS symptoms but I am sure there is one. He came down with PANDAS the exact time I came down wih arthritis. Maybe it was the same strain of strep. I had strep alot as a child, my daughter was a chronic strep case till her tonsils came out a few years ago. I know she rexposed my son over and over during her strep years. But it is all interesting in hindsight.

 

Thanks for the good relevant article.

 

I googled "lyme disease strep" and I found this article. I'm pasting the relavant paragraphs, but follow the link if you wan the full article.

 

I think this may be the key of our kids' problems with strep.

 

I wonder what exactly the mean at the end when they mention the "treatment altered form"... anyone???

 

http://www.encyclomedia.com/lyme_disease.html

 

 

Sleeper:

One of the sleeping antigens that is very hard to measure is streptococcus. It has been well established that the toxins from streptococci, as well as those from mycoplasmas, have an affinity for joints. We have found in the course of taking comprehensive histories of our patients that a tremendous number of them have had severe troubles with their sinuses or their tonsils or their ears, or have had scarlet fever or rheumatic fever-all streptococcal conditions. Strep is an organism that is very susceptible to penicillin, which is why rheumatic fever and scarlet fever are no longer the terrible menaces they were a generation ago. But even after it has been knocked out as a source of infection, streptococcus hangs on for years-in tonsils, around teeth, and in other hiding places-not causing infection, but serving as another source of antigen, or toxin, with that demonstrated specificity for joints.

 

In treating rheumatoid arthritis, when a physician gets to the point with tetracycline therapy that the mycoplasmas have been substantially reduced and further progress appears to be limited, it makes sense to probe the possibility that streptococcus is complicating the process. If a titer of streptococcal antibodies indicates that their levels are elevated, then both the mycoplasma and the strep can be treated at the same time, continuing tetracycline for the former and using ampicillin for the latter.

 

Nothing about rheumatoid arthritis is simple, and it doesn't necessarily stop there; the streptococcus often alters its form, which further compounds the problem. Treatment of the strep then takes one kind of medication, and treatment of the altered form requires yet another.

[smartyjones]

I wonder what exactly the mean at the end when they mention the "treatment altered form"... anyone???

 

 

 

isn't that the same theory that many prescribe to about lyme -- that the bacteria itself changes shape/form to elude destruction.

 

when you've got some time - right! -- you may want to look up "pleomorphism". it's that theory that there can be many different forms of a bacteria, virus, etc -- some being harmful, others not, and the bacteria itself "downgrades" or "upgrades" due to either changes in other bacteria, etc or changes in the environment. usually with it, is that the terrain determines what it allows to survive. i believe it was first proposed by Bechamp -- but Pasteur's theories of the microbe were more popular (although, he did recant before his death -- yes? chemar?) Rife, i believe of the Rife machine people discuss with lyme, was also involved at this time.

 

we were previously using pleo sanum products which are based on this theory. we are no longer b/c we switched to a different dr who uses other products, but still sort of along this theory.

 

i think some theories in this line of thinking are seen as kind of out there; where the most commonly accepted is that an organism (maybe not correct word) can shed it's cell wall and become harder to eradicate.

[momcap]

I googled "lyme disease strep" and I found this article. I'm pasting the relavant paragraphs, but follow the link if you wan the full article.

 

I think this may be the key of our kids' problems with strep.

 

I wonder what exactly the mean at the end when they mention the "treatment altered form"... anyone???

 

http://www.encyclomedia.com/lyme_disease.html

 

 

Sleeper:

One of the sleeping antigens that is very hard to measure is streptococcus. It has been well established that the toxins from streptococci, as well as those from mycoplasmas, have an affinity for joints. We have found in the course of taking comprehensive histories of our patients that a tremendous number of them have had severe troubles with their sinuses or their tonsils or their ears, or have had scarlet fever or rheumatic fever-all streptococcal conditions. Strep is an organism that is very susceptible to penicillin, which is why rheumatic fever and scarlet fever are no longer the terrible menaces they were a generation ago. But even after it has been knocked out as a source of infection, streptococcus hangs on for years-in tonsils, around teeth, and in other hiding places-not causing infection, but serving as another source of antigen, or toxin, with that demonstrated specificity for joints.

 

In treating rheumatoid arthritis, when a physician gets to the point with tetracycline therapy that the mycoplasmas have been substantially reduced and further progress appears to be limited, it makes sense to probe the possibility that streptococcus is complicating the process. If a titer of streptococcal antibodies indicates that their levels are elevated, then both the mycoplasma and the strep can be treated at the same time, continuing tetracycline for the former and using ampicillin for the latter.

 

Nothing about rheumatoid arthritis is simple, and it doesn't necessarily stop there; the streptococcus often alters its form, which further compounds the problem. Treatment of the strep then takes one kind of medication, and treatment of the altered form requires yet another.

 

Wow, that makes a lot of sense. Thanks for attaching the article. Now I feel better about taking ds to see a Pediatric Rheumatologist.