Ticked Off

I knew of this long ago, but had not thought about it in a while, and now it has me riled up again.  It came into my consciousness again due to an e-mail I received from my veterinarian.

The letter sent by the veterinarian was concerning Lyme Disease.  The letter was touting a relatively new vaccine for DOGS that can prevent Lyme Disease.  I would love to get this vaccine for my dog, but I have to check first if it is advisable for my elderly dog

Lyme disease is a bacterial infection transmitted to various mammals (including dogs and we humans) through the bite of infected deer ticks. It is the most common tick-borne disease in the US and Canada.  .Symptoms may take as much as a month following a tick bite.  Symptoms range from initially flu-like symptoms… fever, chills, fatigue, headaches, and muscle or joint aches.  If left untreated, the pathogen can spread throughout the body leading to severe joint pain and swelling, facial palsy, neurological issues (like pseudo-meningitis), and heart palpitations and chronic fatigue.  These symptoms may persist for very long, long periods of time.   The condition can often (not always) be successfully treated with antibiotics IF it is identified early, but if it is not identified early enough, antibiotics are less effective.  And far worse is that a percentage of people (with or without antibiotic treatment) may have a persistent form of the infection that is quite debilitating, including chronic fatigue, chronic joint pain, and mental “fog”.   This chronic, persistent form that ultimately does not respond to treatment is medically called Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome (PTLDS).  And everything I have read about this condition, is that it destroys a person’s quality of life.  

SO….why am I riled up, you may ask?  I am angry because currently, there is NO human vaccine for Lyme Disease.  Folks might say…. “Oh well, it must be easier to make for dogs for some reason.”  but that is INCORRECT.  This letter from the veterinarian had me remember the idea that there WAS once an FDA approved HUMAN Lyme vaccine…… but it was removed from the market about 25 YEARS AGO (technically 2002) due to controversy from the newly developing “anti-vaxx” crowd.  

The anti-vaxxers are gullible, foolish folks who do not understand science, and it appalls me that we no longer have this vaccine.  Of course, in the modern-day things have grown progressively WORSE, with the Kennedy MAHA movement and all their new, even more prolific lying.  I never thought I would see a day where a viable, valuable vaccine was discontinued due to misguided, public fear…. Let alone what we have now where political “leaders” spread b*llsh*t about science they themselves know nothing about that has direct, negative effects on a huge number of us.   

With global warming, the taxonomic range for Lyme Disease bearing ticks is EXPANDING into more northernly areas than it had ever previously been seen.  Back in 2002 I was very  alarmed at the loss of the vaccine for friends and relative who lived in that tick zone, but I lived outside of the Lyme Disease threat zone.  Now, I am WITHIN the Lyme Disease tick zone….. due to the tick expansion from global warming.  

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