My sister has said to have meniere's disease, but no doctor can help her lessen it at all. is it possible she actually has lymes disease?

usually no

is she a hunter?
a hiker?
was she bit by a deer or turkey tick? did she have the bullseye ring ?

ATLANTA, Jan. 12, 2011 – Urging Both Scientists and Journalists to Do More thorough Research Into Vaccines and Autism

ATLANTA, Jan. 12, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Last week, an article in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), written by a freelance newspaper reporter, Brian Deer, created a media firestorm in the United States. In his article, Brian Deer accuses Dr. Andrew Wakefield of deliberate fraud regarding his 1998 case series, which was published in the British journal, The Lancet.  Dr. Wakefield reported that the children in his case series were suffering from a novel form of bowel disease and that parents reported a temporal link between the onset of symptoms and receipt of the MMR vaccine. Contrary to what has been reported in the media over the years, Dr. Wakefield never stated that the MMR vaccine caused autism. the full text of the original paper is available at generationrescue.org.

These libelous accusations are based on the flimsiest possible construct. Deer claims fraud on the basis of differences between the case histories in the Lancet study and the children's private medical records which Deer obtained under questionable circumstances.  Since the team at the Royal Free Hospital never had access to the children's private medical records, it was impossible for them to know what was in them and, therefore, impossible for them to fraudulently report something different.  It is standard practice in medicine for a specialist seeing a new patient to take a new history. of the parents involved in the original study, none have made any complaint, at any time, against Dr. Wakefield.  In the case of the only parent we can confirm Brian Deer actually spoke to, Deer used false pretenses and the alias "Brian Lawrence" to obtain the interview.  The parent did not turn over any medical records to him.

The undersigned autism organizations, representing thousands of parents, are deeply disturbed by this most recent character assassination of Dr. Andrew Wakefield.  This is an attempt to discredit a doctor who has been extraordinarily courageous in treating and researching children suffering with both bowel disease and autism. He has paid a high personal price for his refusal to walk away from children who are suffering and has earned the utmost respect from the families of these children.  We believe this is an industry-driven attempt to shift public attention away from legitimate concerns about vaccine reactions and the development of autism.  Science, even controversial findings, should not be distorted by fear or greed.

The truth in this story is that Dr. Wakefield's findings of bowel disease in association with autism have been replicated (see references) and his work along with that of other doctors has advanced the treatment of these children to the point that the journal, Pediatrics, has published a paper on the treatment for gastrointestinal symptoms in children with autism.  The issue of whether MMR is causal for this subgroup of autistic children remains an open question.  The epidemiological studies that claim to prove there is no link between the MMR and autism have not had the statistical power to rule out a link for a subset of susceptible children.  Much study remains to be done.  Attempts to "shoot the messenger" will only result in further erosion of public trust.

Parents of children with autism encourage the media to dig deeper and provide comprehensive investigations and balanced reporting.  For more information or to schedule an interview please contact Rebecca Estepp, , 858-829-6454.

Age of Autism

Autism Action Network

Autism Media Channel

Autism Research Institute

Elizabeth Birt Center for Autism Law and Advocacy

National Autism Association

Schafer Autism Report

TACA-Talk about Curing Autism

The Autism Trust USA/UK

the Coalition for SafeMinds

The following peer-reviewed papers support Dr. Wakefield's original findings:

Furlano R, Anthony a, Day R, Brown a, Mc Garvey L, Thomson M, et al. "Colonic CD8 and T cell filtration with epithelial damage in children with autism." J Pediatr 2001;138:366-72.

Sabra S, Bellanti JA, Colon AR. "Ileal lymphoid hyperplasia, non-specific colitis and pervasive developmental disorder in children." The Lancet 1998;352:234-5.

Torrente F., Machado N., Perez-Machado M., Furlano R., Thomson M., Davies S., Wakefield AJ, Walker-Smith JA, Murch SH. "Enteropathy with T cell infiltration and epithelial IgG deposition in autism." Molecular Psychiatry. 2002;7:375-382.

Wakefield AJ, Anthony a, Murch SH, Thomson M, Montgomery SM, Davies S, Walker-Smith JA. "Enterocolitis in children with developmental disorder." American Journal of Gastroenterology 2000;95:2285-2295.

Ashwood P, Anthony a, Pellicer AA, Torrente F, Wakefield AJ. "Intestinal lymphocyte populations in children with regressive autism: evidence for extensive mucosal immunopathology." Journal of Clinical Immunology, 2003;23:504-517.

The following peer-reviewed papers replicate Dr. Wakefield's original findings:

Gonzalez, L. et al., "Endoscopic and Histological Characteristics of the Digestive Mucosa in Autistic Children with gastro-Intestinal Symptoms." Arch Venez Pueric Pediatr, 2005;69:19-25.

Balzola, F., et al., "Panenteric IBD-like disease in a patient with regressive autism shown for the first time by wireless capsule enteroscopy: another piece in the jig-saw of the gut-brain syndrome?" American Journal of Gastroenterology, 2005. 100(4): p. 979- 981.

Balzola F., et al., "Autistic enterocolitis: confirmation of a new inflammatory bowel disease in an Italian cohort of patients." Gastroenterology 2005;128(Suppl. 2); A-303.

These are the articles on treatment of gastrointestinal symptoms in autistic children:

Buie T, et al. Pediatrics. 2010 Jan;125 Suppl 1:S19-29.  Recommendations for evaluation and treatment of common gastrointestinal problems in children with ASDs.

Buie T, et al.  Pediatrics.  2010 Jan;125 Suppl 1:S1-18.  Evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment of gastrointestinal disorders in individuals with ASDs: a consensus report.

SOURCE Coalition for Vaccine Safety

(Author’s note: thanks to all who sent comments and opinions concerning last week’s article on the second Amendment. that turned out to be a great discussion with many valid points offered. I tried to reply to everyone, but if I did not get yours answered just send an e-mail to me and I’ll respond).

With the arrival of January, many hunters are in a sad and deprived state because deer hunting in the Northern zone is over for this season. take heart, however, because there are other hunting possibilities out there in the next couple of months with the pursuit of raccoons an entertaining option.

Georgia’s open season for hunting raccoons began in October and continues on until Feb. 28. if you like to hunt with dogs, this sport offers an enjoyable evening in the woods and you can get plenty of action in our part of the state. You also have the option of taking the raccoons once they are treed by the dogs or just passing them up for another trip.

The best way to learn about this sport is to go with one of the many veterans in our area. It’s not terribly complicated, but for the most part the key elements are good lights and trained dogs. Dogs are the biggest problem for most of us because without them you’re fishing without a pole.

The basic procedure is to turn the pack loose in an area you have chosen and let the dogs do the work. if they get on the scent, they will let you know with their frenetic baying. if the dogs tree a raccoon, that beautiful baying and yelping sound will hit another level. The owners of the dogs will know exactly what each sound means and will even know the sounds of their individual dogs. when the dogs have treed a raccoon, your work begins because then you have to get to where they are, which can mean traveling on foot over rough ground, swamps, etc.

If you think ‘coon hunting might be to your liking and are interested enough to begin a serious search for coonhounds, here’s a quick rundown on the top breeds, according to the experts.

► The American Leopard Hound is a breed brought to North America by Spanish Conquistadors and crossed with native Mexican dogs. these dogs were originally brought to the United States to hunt bear.

► The Black and Tan Coonhound was developed in the Southern United States. Its ancestry reaches back to the American Foxhound, Virginia Foxhound and probably the Bloodhound. they are bigger than the other breeds and were the first breed of this type to be registered (1900).

► The Bluetick Coonhound is probably a descendent of English Quick Foxhounds and began as a breed used to hunt big game. Blueticks were first registered as an American breed in 1946.

► The English Coonhound is typically recognized as the breed with the most history. Its roots (as are most of these breeds) go back to the English Foxhound and was first registered in the United States in 1905.

Additionally, there are other breeds that are just as well recognized and registered in the United States, including the Plott Coonhound, the Redbone Coonhound and the Treeing Walker Coonhound.

You can learn about any of these breeds with a simple online search or from the purists of the sport. Specifications concerning any characteristic of these dogs are included, along with a complete history of the breed.

There are a couple of other points to remember. Raccoons can be carriers of rabies and if they have the disease they will exhibit aimless wandering and lack of coordination or they will display aggressive behavior that can include attacks and self-mutilation. if you see an animal that shows these symptoms you should report it to the Georgia Wildlife Resources Division.

The natural habitat of raccoons is deciduous and mixed-forest lands, and that’s good news for most Georgians because that’s what we have an abundance of. There is no shortage of places to go in our immediate area and a lot of landowners are willing to allow hunting on their property if approached in the right way.

If you’re in the market for a new and exciting hunting excursion, consider catching up with a local hunter who’s already involved in this activity and check it out. You might just get hooked on the sights and sounds of the sport.

Originally published in the Athens Banner-Herald on Wednesday, January 05, 2011

what are the symptoms for lyme disease and ticks in dogs???

Coooooooo did a great job of answering. In addition to the clinical symptoms she lists, many vets now do yearly Lymes tests during annual exam. If you live in an area where deer ticks are prevalent, I highly recommend the annual tests. Two of my dogs have tested positive, despite the fact that I use Frontline. I even had a friend who contracted Lymes when we were on a hike with our dogs; we hiked Saturday and she was already having symptoms on Sunday, and diagnosed Monday.

I've heard questionable things about the vaccines, and I have not chosen to go that route for either myself or my dogs despite the obvious Lymes risk in my area.