How to trust doctors now ?!

[Hypo84]

About 2 weeks ago I posted a thread about my moms red patch on her arm that showed up 30 days after was bitten by tick, but on her back.

She went to 1 dermatologist who said that patch doesn't look like lymes and it's fine, then she went to private dermatologist who said that it's not skin problem, smth else and referred her to her oncologist (since she had mastectomy on that side). Her oncologist said it's some kind of bite, nothing important. Patch still didn't go away so she went to state clinic, was looked up by some young infectologist who said that it's not cellulitis or lymph vessel inflammation and basically not the infection. In these two weeks she was given antibiotics, and she also took antihistamine.
After 2 weeks nothing has changed and she took Elisa test for lymes - negative.

Finally, today, after 16 days she goes to private infectologist who is specialist for Lymes also (70y old guy) he looks at it and immediately says it's lymes and gives her treatment.

She didn't have characteristic bulls-eye rash and appeared after 30 days, it wasnt on place where tick bit her, she didn't have any other symptom of lyme's until 2 days ago when her knee started hurting. All of the previous doctors said they don't know what it is but it's not lymes and finally last doctor says he is certain it is lymes.

As you might guess this thing is terrible for my HA. She didn't have classic symptom of Lymes and if she didn't went to that final doctor she wouldn't get her diagnosis and it would become chronic which with her breast cancer fight could turn out fatal. Or this last doctor just made mistake, anyhow...it's ****ing terrible.

[pulisa]

So the Elisa test came back negative and then another specialist looked at the patch and said it was Lyme's? Did she have another Elisa test?

[countrygirl]

This is a huge problem with Lymes and there sadly is no totally infallable test for it so at the end of the day its usually one Drs opinion against another. There are some Drs who say that other Drs are over diagnosing lymes when its not lymes especially in countries that you pay for your healthcare unlike UK but again thats just an opinion of other Dr's.

The elisa test is very inaccurate but they usually do another test that is more accurate but I can't remember its name - has she had the second different test?

I assume she is now on antibiotics as if she has lymes?

Sadly nothing is ever 100% certain in health diagnosis, Drs are human and you are relying on their training and experience.

Lymes is the hardest disease to diagnose because of the unreliability of current tests.

[Hypo84]

The doctor who is supposed to be the best for Lymes in my country said that she didn't get primary rash on her site of bite, that this is secondary rash that appeared 32 days after bite and that doctors who don't know lymes well have hard time diagnosing it and that blood tests are very inaccurate.

She now starts a therapy 3 weeks of doxycyclin and after that 6 days of azythromicin.

Will be tough but he diagnosed her with lyme disease early stage even though it was 7 weeks after a bite.

---------- Post added at 13:52 ---------- Previous post was at 13:44 ----------

This just sucks for HA, since we are usually afraid of some serious rare conditions and in May I got cellulitis in my arm after tetanus vaccine which was wtf?!
Now my mom gets lyme's after tick bite, but with no initial rash and secondary rash wasn't like bull's eye and no other symptoms initially so doctors couldn't diagnose it.

2 rare situations in 2 months :(

[Fishmanpa]

2 rare situations in 2 months :(

So it's not the doctors as much as the rarity of the affliction.

Positive thoughts

[countrygirl]

You have been very unlucky but sadly thats life and at least your mum is now getting the correct treatment she needs and you have recovered from your cellulitis.

Having HA does not make us immune to health conditions from an organic cause much as we would like it to

[Hypo84]

I know we can get sick, I just had stomach virus 2 days ago, it just sucks to experience 2 rare health issues in 2 months. Sucks for getting better in dealing with health anxiety of course.

No point in whining though, so moving on...