Guest guest Posted July 8, 2005 Report Share Posted July 8, 2005 Ist Bartonella henslea you're talking about, Right? And not Bartonella quintana or b. elizabethae The transmission of Bartonella to humans can be from: 1) Ticks or Cat fleas (or animal bite) or sand fleas (see reference 1, 3) But it's suspected it can be transmitted from other biting flying insects (see reference 2) 2) Treatment is usually best with a combination of antibiotics; See reference 4 3) But chronic cases can be hard to cure- and research indicates that the antibiotics used for brucella may work on chronic bartonells. see reference 5 Bartonella resides in alot of animals, not just the cat, and usually is not pathological to them (doesn't make them sick). Why some bacteria make some people sick and not others probably has to do with individual differences in the immune system- it doesn't necessarily mean her immune system isn't working properly. I tested positive for ParvoB19 - which usually infects dogs (and I don't have a dog) and I tested negative for Bartonella, and I've had a ton of cats. The best advice I think, is that you should culture and run antibiotic susceptibility tests, so that you use the RIGHT antibiotics the first time. Good luck. Barb Reference 1 http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol9no3/02-0133.htm reference 2 http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol10no7/03-0896.htm reference 3 http://www.medicdirect.co.uk/diseases/default.ihtml?pid=2057 & step=4 reference 4 http://jac.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/45/3/305 reference 5 http://jac.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/46/5/811 > > I don't know how many people here know a lot about Bartonella as a > chronic infection, but I have an urgent question and thought I'd try > you all--even a direction to go in to get the info would be great. > > My daughter's test came back positive with Bartonella with a titre > of 320. (highest the doc has ever seen) About greater than 40 is > positive. My husband has also just tested positive for Bartonella. > Both my husband and daughter are also positive for lyme, and I've > assumed the bartonella infection is tick borne. > > I went to the vet today figuring maybe I should test my beloved cat > too--cats are said to be carriers of bartonella,(the source of cat > scratch fever) and the vet, who knows that my daughter has been > really sick for 5 years and hardly out of bed did some research for > me. He said 95 percent of cats in homes where one human has > bartonella test out positive. He said further that in cats > bartonella is hard to get rid of and usually since it doesn't bother > cats and most people aren't made severely ill, cats aren't treated. > So, probably my cat has it, and he's not certain he can get rid of > it. > > Okay, my question is, can someone suffering from chronic bart get re- > infected by their cat, if their immune system is out of whack? Does > anyone mind explaining why tick borne bartonella seems to be more > chronic than the usually acute cat scratch fever? i.e. do I have to > not have cats around? My vet pretty much thinks so, but I don't know > how much he knows about human bartonella. > I wish I could ask the lyme doc this, but he doesn't return calls. > Thanks > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 8, 2005 Report Share Posted July 8, 2005 I think there are two possibilities, either/or or both/and 1) Borrelia initiates an immune defect in many of us.It downregulates immune cells--Stricker notes cd57, and there are others. Once this immune defect is acquired by chronic borrelia, other infections take hold and are hard to get rid of 2) Bartonella like borrelia, babesia, may be weaponized? IE some of it out there may be more virulent than naturally occuring. I don't see how unless the cat scratches you, you'll keep getting it from the cat. > > I don't know how many people here know a lot about Bartonella as a > chronic infection, but I have an urgent question and thought I'd try > you all--even a direction to go in to get the info would be great. > > My daughter's test came back positive with Bartonella with a titre > of 320. (highest the doc has ever seen) About greater than 40 is > positive. My husband has also just tested positive for Bartonella. > Both my husband and daughter are also positive for lyme, and I've > assumed the bartonella infection is tick borne. > > I went to the vet today figuring maybe I should test my beloved cat > too--cats are said to be carriers of bartonella,(the source of cat > scratch fever) and the vet, who knows that my daughter has been > really sick for 5 years and hardly out of bed did some research for > me. He said 95 percent of cats in homes where one human has > bartonella test out positive. He said further that in cats > bartonella is hard to get rid of and usually since it doesn't bother > cats and most people aren't made severely ill, cats aren't treated. > So, probably my cat has it, and he's not certain he can get rid of > it. > > Okay, my question is, can someone suffering from chronic bart get re- > infected by their cat, if their immune system is out of whack? Does > anyone mind explaining why tick borne bartonella seems to be more > chronic than the usually acute cat scratch fever? i.e. do I have to > not have cats around? My vet pretty much thinks so, but I don't know > how much he knows about human bartonella. > I wish I could ask the lyme doc this, but he doesn't return calls. > Thanks > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 8, 2005 Report Share Posted July 8, 2005 FWIW, I saw Stricker recently, and he was apalled I hadn't been tested for Bartonella, because he associates it with more severe neurological symptoms. Whether that is more true when Bartonella's present as a coinfection with Lyme I don't know. Bless him, Stricker ordered that and a slew of other tests, so I left his office ten tubes lighter than I came in. > > > > I don't know how many people here know a lot about Bartonella as a > > chronic infection, but I have an urgent question and thought I'd > try > > you all--even a direction to go in to get the info would be great. > > > > My daughter's test came back positive with Bartonella with a titre > > of 320. (highest the doc has ever seen) About greater than 40 is > > positive. My husband has also just tested positive for Bartonella. > > Both my husband and daughter are also positive for lyme, and I've > > assumed the bartonella infection is tick borne. > > > > I went to the vet today figuring maybe I should test my beloved cat > > too--cats are said to be carriers of bartonella,(the source of cat > > scratch fever) and the vet, who knows that my daughter has been > > really sick for 5 years and hardly out of bed did some research for > > me. He said 95 percent of cats in homes where one human has > > bartonella test out positive. He said further that in cats > > bartonella is hard to get rid of and usually since it doesn't > bother > > cats and most people aren't made severely ill, cats aren't > treated. > > So, probably my cat has it, and he's not certain he can get rid of > > it. > > > > Okay, my question is, can someone suffering from chronic bart get > re- > > infected by their cat, if their immune system is out of whack? > Does > > anyone mind explaining why tick borne bartonella seems to be more > > chronic than the usually acute cat scratch fever? i.e. do I have to > > not have cats around? My vet pretty much thinks so, but I don't > know > > how much he knows about human bartonella. > > I wish I could ask the lyme doc this, but he doesn't return calls. > > Thanks > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 7, 2006 Report Share Posted June 7, 2006 My symptoms seem to match yours and I did test positive for Bartonella. My doc had me on Rifampin a while back but seems to think the IV rochephin and biaxin/tinadaole combo will be a winner. Not sure what others who have Bartonella are taking but would be curious. -------------- Original message ---------------------- From: " highlandave98 " <seanmiller1@...> > I was tested twice for Bartonella and got a negative but my symptoms > are neuropsychaitric anxiety,agitation, depression and I hear these > are symptoms for Bartonella as well as Lyme and that the Bartonella > blood tests aren't reliable? any thoughts as I don't want to take the > wrong antbiotics for know reason but I don't want to miss this > diagnosis either? > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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