Le Roy and Corinth, NY, USA: Unusual outbreak of Tourette-like symptoms in at least 22 people

[Emily]

Originally Posted by alert

Hat-tip Pathfinder. It's a small world after all. This is the outbreak I referred to in post #109 above in Uganda that has a lot of similarities with this one. Click the link for a lot of revealing information:

http://www.monitor.co.ug/OpEd/Commen.../-/1292e61z/-/

Nodding Disease: What do the Acholi and New Yorkers share?
[snip]

That's a very thoughtful article, Pathfinder and Alert. The last question the author asks expresses the shared global concerns for welfare that I think brought his article to your attention:

If we cannot fight for the healthcare and welfare of our children, what justifies our national priorities?

Anti-NMDAR encephalitis could be compared to nodding disease as far as the possible fatal course. I read a few days ago in the Facebook support group about a 33-yr-man dying in spite of a great deal of treatment. But also I read about a 5-yr-old still very healthy after immune treatment when he was 2 yrs old. Even though nobody I know of ever mentioned 'conversion disorder' as a possible diagnosis for anti-NMDAR e, patients are frequently thought to have other serious disorders or drug or medication reactions prior to the autoimmune diagnosis. And they also need to use many medications in addition to immune treatments to treat serious symptoms, (sometime to even be able to deliver the immune treatments a coma needs to be induced.)

There is some important news here on the Le Roy cases:

http://thebatavian.com/howard-owens/...isorder-diagno

Statement from NIMH: Dr. Swedo has not seen patients, cannot confirm conversion disorder diagnosis
Submitted by Howard Owens on February 7, 2012 - 4:55pm
[snip]
We just received the following statement from NIMH:

The information you have from Dr. Mechtler regarding Dr. Swedo is incorrect. Dr. Swedo has not evaluated any of the patients so therefore cannot confirm any diagnosis.

[Digger]

MaryF,

Please see my private message sent a few minutes ago in regards to your request.

Thanks,
Digger

[Digger]

Emily,

There is some important news here on the Le Roy cases:

http://thebatavian.com/howard-owens/...isorder-diagno[/

Thank You for sharing this.

[Shiloh]

This article published Dr. Rosario Trifiletti's Feb. 6th statement: http://www.wgrz.com/news/article/154...-to-Infections

[Digger]

Timeline of Notable Events for Indiana Case
Back on 11/29/11, I reported that my nephew also had sudden onset neurological symptoms that were similar in nature to the LeRoy, New York Cases. The sudden onset symptoms for my nephew, referred to here as Sam, began on 9/7/2011. Sam's parents were not aware of the New York cases until 11/29/11.

In the attached PDF file is a detailed timeline of events extracted from Sam's father's Face Book wall posts. Most of the illness information is contained in the September 2011, October 2011 and November 2011 sections. Sudden onset entries begin on page 18. It is overly detailed to provide any clues that might help to unravel the mystery illness that has afflicted these students.

A Summary Timeline of Events Follow.
August 2010-
*Sam's father becomes ill with fever and acute sinus infection.

September 2010-
*Sam's father's ear infections continuing off and on.
*There is odd odor reported at the high school-school evacuated -students taken to ER-Not sure if relevant.
*Sam's family dog is very ill and is experiencing seizures-Not sure if relevant

October-November 2010-
*Sam becomes very ill with Tonsillitis and Mononucleosis, he misses over a week of school. Sam has bad headaches and neck aches.
*Sam's father also becomes ill as he has been battling ear, nose, throat infections. He too becomes ill with symptoms similar to Sam.

December 2010-
*Sam and his father recover somewhat from previous illnesses.

January 2011-
*Sam's father still a bit ill off and on. Begins to help as adult assistant with High school band winter drum line.

February 2011-
*Sam becomes ill again with an infection.

March 2011-
*Sam's father becomes ill again with ear infections while Sam is on the New York Band Trip
*Sam attends a trip to New York City with his band group-Bumps his head while on bus and passes out momentarily. Sam seems OK afterwards-no medical intervention is required

April-May-June-July 2011-
*Sam's father is ill a few times during this period with E.N.T. infections but not as serious in previous months.
*No mention of any illness for Sam.
*Family is camping on weekends and then also a full (2) weeks during July
*Some hot wet days throughout this period and in later July

August 2011-
*School begins
*Camping still ongoing during weekends
*Band practices prior to school session are ongoing.
*Some band performances later in August in local town parades by Band members

September 2011-
*Sam begins to keep a notebook the first week of September as he cannot remember names of family members-Sam is the only one aware of this notebook at this time.
*9/7/2011-Sam suddenly falls with seizures, intense headaches, twitching and involuntary movements along the entire left side of his body.
*Sam is hospitalized on 9/7/2011
*9/9/2011-Sam has a sinus infection that is concurrent with his other symptoms he is given a stronger antibiotic for the sinus infection.
*Sam undergoes EEG, MRI, Drug Screens, Spinal Tap, Blood Tests, that all come back negative over a period of the following 3-4 weeks of his onset date.-Doctors have no answers.
*Late September- Sam is starting to be able to walk on his own, long term memory issues, tics and headaches continue.
*Sam's family discovers there are a few others from his school who have also come down suddenly ill. One classmate exhibits many of Sam's same symptoms. Notably the memory issues occur with her also.

October 2011-
*Sam gets to go home but not to school. - Still seeing doctors trying to determine cause of symptoms
*Mid-October 2011-Sam tries to go back to school for a few hours. He needs a personal assistant. He cannot remember where his classrooms are and has problems remembering friends.
*late October -Relapse occurs-tics and memory issues are now back. A long term memory event has occurred-Sam can no longer remember people, places and things that occurred prior to 10/26/2011 including family members.
*Late October - School is limited to band class only.

November 2011-
*Sam is still working to be involved part time at school.
*11/19/11-Sam has another long term memory reset. He is re-educated concerning who family members and other relationships are. He doesn't remember friends. He is anxious about family Thanksgiving dinner because he doesn't know anyone there.
*11/29/11-Sam's parents become aware of the (6)LeRoy, NY cases for the first time.

December 2011-
*Sam is doing better-more activity with friends and school events
*12/21/11-Sam begins full day classes at school.
*No significant set backs on motor or memory issues since 11/19/2011.
*Sam still cannot remember most if any events prior to the 10/26-11/19-2011 time frame.
*Intense headaches continue
*Sam is relearning his past

January 2012-
*Sam getting back to normal
*Long term memory issues remain but still at the 10/26-11/19-2011 reset date.
*headaches continue but are slowly getting better.

February 2012-
*Same as late January 2012-Sam is slowly recovering

[Emily]

ETA 2/21/2012:
The headline of the article below seems to be wrong. This article gives the impression that the Nicholsons live in Corinth, not Le Roy.
http://www.wkbw.com/news/local/First...139054424.html

First Leroy Teen Who Reported Symptoms Speaks
By WKBW News
By Kendra Eaglin
February 9, 2012
[snip]
Nicholson talked about the day when her body first started to change. It was last May while she was pitching in a softball game. She felt sick, passed out and began having a seizure...

http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/sho...&postcount=117

Water in an adjacent dolomite quarry has very low level of TCE (median value of five micrograms per liter, which is NYS drinking water standard for TCE). School officials reported that crushed stone from the quarry was used at the school in a road construction project and for subsurface drainage at a playing field. Residual TCE that might be present in stone from the quarry would be reduced or eliminated through evaporation during stone crushing and handling operations.

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/...unted-by-tics/

[snip]
Enter Columbia-trained Dr. Rosario Trifiletti -- a child neurologist in New Jersey, and an expert in PANDAS which is also know as Pediatric Auto-immune Neuropsychiatric Disorder.

Trifiletti visited nine of the girls in Leroy, and is treating them now with simple anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and antibiotics.

Trifiletti told me that he believes a chemical toxin in the environment around Leroy, known as TCE or trichloroethylene, may have predisposed these teens to PANDAS, which is then triggered by a bacterial infection such as strep. But, again, what important to note here is that the physician's treatment doesn’t depend on that belief.....

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/...#ixzz1lxVo9jGQ

The author who wrote that article is doubtful of the link to TCE, but I've wondered if the important TCE exposure was during fetal development. The EPA didn't get involved in limiting environmental exposures from the TCE spill in Le Roy until the late 1990's, I think. Also there was a local business regularly releasing TCE and other solvents into the air until at least 1997. (It's documented on a government web site.) So perhaps there were occupational exposures.

I wonder if at least some of the patients in the cluster might be sensitized to TCE, so a very low exposure from the fill used at the school set this in motion.

[Emily]

There's a thoughtful new article written by a psychiatrist with ties to the Le Roy area. He discusses possible ramifications from a conversion disorder diagnosis.

http://psychcentral.com/blog/archive...skeptics-view/

“Hysteria” in LeRoy: A Skeptic’s View
By Ronald Pies, M.D.
I grew up in Batavia, N.Y., about ten miles down the road from the small town of LeRoy. I had just gone off to Cornell a few months before the big train derailment in December, 1970, that spilled cyanide crystals and about 30,000 gallons of the solvent called tricholoroethene onto the railroad bed.

I never imagined that 40 years later, as a psychiatrist, I’d be reading about this incident in connection with one of the most mysterious mass outbreaks of neurological symptoms in recent memory.
[snip]
Indeed, there are many difficulties with both the concept of conversion disorder and the secondary explanation of “mass contagion.” When I was in residency, one of my revered teachers used to say, “Beware of diagnosing hysteria. It’s usually the last diagnosis the patient will ever receive.” She meant that once a patient had been labeled with “conversion disorder” or “hysteria,” no doctor would ever again take the patient’s symptoms seriously. The patient could end up in the emergency room with crushing, substernal chest pain radiating to her jaw—classic symptoms of a heart attack—and still be labeled “a hysteric!” ...

[Emily]

http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2012/02/...ocal-families/

NY Mystery Illness Strikes Chord With Local Families
Carol Daniel
February 8, 2012 3:26 PM
O’FALLON, Ill. (KMOX) - Two families in the Metro East can identify with the mysterious illness that has caused about a dozen teenage girls in New York to suddenly develop uncontrollable spasms...

[sharon sanders]

hat tip Michael Coston -

Mystery US outbreak prompts further tests
Tourette’s-like disorder in New York school confounds experts.

Alison Motluk
20 February 2012

This week, officials with the LeRoy Central School District in northwestern New York state approved a plan for further environmental testing at the town’s high school, where 19 people — 18 girls and one boy — have developed a sudden-onset disorder with symptoms similar to the movement disorder Tourette’s syndrome. The outbreak has captured national attention and led experts to suggest an array of possible explanations — none of which seem to quite work. With speculation running high, here is a look at the facts surrounding the outbreak

more...

http://www.nature.com/news/mystery-u...-tests-1.10052

[Anne]

quote : There's a thoughtful new article written by a psychiatrist with ties to the Le Roy area. He discusses possible ramifications from a conversion disorder diagnosis.

Thank you Emily, very good paper.Ive seen your CDC map with more " tourette" near NYork.
here about more schizophrenia in big towns http://mindhacks.com/2012/02/16/a-journey-through-schizophrenia-science/
I was alerted by an increase in schizophrenia in large cities: something in the environment?
I can"t understand the pod cast.. ( speaking... ), perhaps interresting ?

[Emily]

Originally Posted by Anne

quote : There's a thoughtful new article written by a psychiatrist with ties to the Le Roy area. He discusses possible ramifications from a conversion disorder diagnosis.

Thank you Emily, very good paper.Ive seen your CDC map with more " tourette" near NYork.
here about more schizophrenia in big towns http://mindhacks.com/2012/02/16/a-jo...enia-science/I was alerted by an increase in schizophrenia in large cities: something in the environment?
I can"t understand the pod cast.. ( speaking... ), perhaps interresting ?

Anne,
That is very interesting about schizophrenia having such a strong link with urban living. I couldn't find the podcast, but here is a link to a study about prenatal lead exposure and schizophrenia.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science...61813X11002087

I'm not sure if lead is a concern, but I was shocked when I saw that New York City is still using no. 6 "bunker oil" for heating.
http://theuptowner.org/2011/11/29/cl...-bigger-bills/ There seems a lot of possibilities for urban pollutants to affect neuro-development. (And I saw and smelled noxious black smoke like that coming out of a suburban fireplace chimney recently. I hate to think of pregnant women and small kids exposed to that, whatever was being burnt.)

I found an article about the Tourette cluster in Corinth, NY that mentions a boy there who got Tourette last year along with the two girls.
http://wnyt.com/article/stories/S2470566.shtml?cat=300
Mystery illness causes concern in Saratoga County and beyond
Posted at: 01/26/2012 6:43 PM | Updated at: 01/26/2012 6:46 PM
By: Dan Levy

The boy and his mother are interviewed here:


And here is a recent follow-up on one of the girls in Corinth:
http://saratogian.com/articles/2012/...default#photo1
Local parents want answers: Two Corinth students’ Tourette-like symptoms similar to those experienced by teens in Le Roy
Published: Sunday, February 12, 2012

[Anne]

http://mindhacks.com/2012/02/16/a-jo...renia-science/

Robin Murray and schizophrenia : http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01bwmvt

[Emily]

Originally Posted by Anne

http://mindhacks.com/2012/02/16/a-jo...renia-science/

Robin Murray and schizophrenia : http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01bwmvt

Thanks, Anne. I enjoyed listening to Dr. Murray's interview. He said that finally psychiatry is beginning to open to the idea that many illnesses are caused by an interaction between genetic and environmental factors. For a long time it was strictly a battle between the two approaches. Also environmental influences can be social or physical in origin.

I found another interview with him from 2009 that has a written transcript available:
http://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-an...al-people-sane

Also found another case of a movement disorder that started a few weeks ago in a 23-yr-old woman in Swissvale, PA, (near Pittsburgh.) She just found out about the Le Roy cases and wonders if there is an environmental link. Her illness was so bad that she was hospitalized for 4 days.
She comments after the article in a response to a question there that she NEVER had the H1N1 flu vaccine and her last Gardasil shot was over 5 yrs ago.
She did work as a hair stylist which is a profession that can have some significant chemical exposures, so that might fit in with the toxin/subclinical infection hypothesis.
There is a video at the link, and her symptoms are still preventing her from working.
http://www.wpxi.com/news/news/local/...JGwd/#comments

Updated: 5:59 p.m. Friday, Feb. 17, 2012 | Posted: 4:09 p.m. Friday, Feb. 17, 2012
Swissvale woman suffering from mysterious illness

[Anne]

Thank you for the transcript, Emily.. I couldn't hear ( understand ) the interview...
with schizophrenia : there is " toxoplasma" theory too..

[Anne]

Thank you for the transcript, Emily.. I couldn't hear ( understand ) the interview...
with schizophrenia : there is " toxoplasma" theory too..

[Shiloh]

Source: http://yourlife.usatoday.com/health/...ter/53272518/1

Doctor: Some students with mystery illness 'all better'
By Melissa Holmes, WGRZ-TV, Buffalo, N.Y.
Updated 4h 8m ago


LeROY, N.Y. — As the spotlight on more than a dozen teenage girls with uncontrollable tics starts to fade, that may be leading to a steady improvement in the health of some patients, their doctor said.

For weeks, Dr. Jennifer McVige of Dent Neurologic Institute in Amherst, N.Y., has seen 15 cases, a dozen of them students, associated with the strange illness in this town of about 7,650 people 30 miles southwest of Rochester, N.Y. As many as 18 may have been affected. Most are teen girls.

"There are two of the girls that are all better, and there are three more that are just there," McVige said...

[Emily]

http://www.wgrz.com/rss/article/1572...y-Test-Results

Downstate Doctor Releases LeRoy Test Results
5:20 PM, Feb 24, 2012
[snip]
Below is the full press release from Dr. Trifiletti regarding the results of his lab testing:
"I continue to work with a PANDAS-like diagnosis. The lab work is now complete on all nine of the patients I examined on January 29, 2012 and has shown evidence of infection by either Streptococcus Pyogenes (the common strep throat bacterium, found in five of nine patients) or Mycoplasma Pneumonia (a bacteria-like agent that is a common cause of a mild pneumonia-like illness, found in eight of nine patients). Two patients also meet CDC diagnostic criteria for Lyme disease. They are being treated appropriately according to the infectious agents found and are responding to treatment. In my opinion, these objective findings, which would be exceedingly unlikely to occur by chance alone, support my diagnosis of a PANDAS-like illness. I must remain open to another possibility such as mass psychogenic illness, which can never be supported or refuted by objective findings. However, given the clinical and laboratory data, I find a PANDAS-like illness a very likely medical diagnosis in these children. I hope to see the teenagers again soon, but given that I am doing house calls from some two hundred miles away, it requires extraordinary planning. In the meantime, I remain in close contact with their parents."

[Emily]

It was suggested that this might be a good time for a brief summary of the status of the Le Roy outbreak. Here is an attempt:

Current case count and sex of patients in Le Roy based on the latest reference I could find dated February 8:

There are now 18 known cases of Le Roy students, as well as two adults, who have come down with illnesses involving involuntary twitches, movements and gestures, according to the Department of Health. Three have come to the attention of the Health Department in just the past few days.

All but one of the students are female.

(One of the adults has spoken to the media and is a female. I don't know what the sex is of the other adult.)

Time frame of identified illness in Le Roy:
1st cast was reported in September 2011. Last 3 cases were reported in early February 2012.

Diagnosis by treating doctors:
As of 3 days ago, the Dent Neurologic Institute in Amherst, N.Y., has seen 15 cases and diagnosed all of these cases with conversion disorder. (They think it is possible that there were one or two index cases with physical neurological disorders in the group of patients not seen at the clinic.)

Dr. Rosario Trifiletti, another pediatric neurologist who specializes in neuroimmune disorders, released a statement on Feb. 24 reporting that he had seen 9 Le Roy patients. His findings were:

• A common strep bacteria in five of the nine patients
• An agent that commonly causes a mild pneumonia-like illness in eight of the nine patients
• Two patients met CDC diagnostic criteria for Lyme disease
• Patients are responding to treatment
• A PANDAS-like illness is a very likely medical diagnosis

Dr. Trifiletti released another update after seeing the two girls with similar symptoms in Corinth, a New York town about 250 miles from Le Roy. The patients are both high school age females. One became ill in May 2011 and the other in August of 2011:

P.A.N.D.A.S. - P.I.T.A.N.D. (P.A.N.S.) Awareness Ribbon & Research Support
Update on LeRoy cases from Dr. Trifiletti:
"UPDATE ON TOURETTE-LIKE ILLNESS CLUSTERS - the Leroy Syndrome

I had the opportunity to examine both girls from Corinth, NY area today. This makes 11 girls examined in all. I spent fours hours with the two families. Although these families traveled through the Leroy area over the past summer, I do not believe this has any bearing on this case. After taking their histories and examining them I am more convinced than ever that they have the same disorder as the Leroy girls and that this is definitely not a conversion disorder. It is a new clinical syndrome.

I think it's best to call this cluster the "Leroy Syndrome" as it does not meet clinical criteria for Tourette Syndrome, PANDAS or PANS. This is a matter of semantics, what doctors sometimes call "nosology"

The "Leroy Syndrome" has the following features:

1. Hyperacute onset - the cardinal feature
2. Exclusively, or largely female, post-pubertal onset
3. Ballistic tics, upper body, frequent unilateral predominance, frequent nuchal involvement with echopractic features
4. Occasional vocal tics, typically synchronous with ballistic movements
5. Occasional features: migraine headache, autonomic dysfunction (POTS and fainting)
6. Minimal or no obsessive-compulsive features or anxiety
7. Minimal or no cognitive decline
8. Minimal or no choreiform signs

The Leroy Syndrome is a PANDAS variant. All cases examined thus far have a GABHS or mycoplasma trigger. All cases are responsive to anti-inflammatory agents. All cases are treatable with appropriate antibiotics.

Dr. T"

Status of environmental testing in Le Roy:
I'll try to post more details on this later here, but at this point testing done at the Le Roy school that the original cluster of students attend has not shown any health concerns. The public water supply to the school and town tested without showing any health concerns. (I think more testing is being done by the school and the Erin Brocovitch team in the area.)
ETA 4/20/2012:
New York State Health Department has a link to their released information on the Le Roy illness cluster here:
New York State Health Department Issues First Summary Report on Le Roy School Case
On April 12, The EPA released the results of ground water sampling done in December 2011 at the Lehigh Valley Railroad Derailment site.
EPA website page with test data.


Cases similar to the Le Roy Syndrome:
The two high school aged girls mentioned above from Corinth, New York. (One case onset May 2011 and one case onset August 2011.)

One of our members posted about 2 high school students, (one male and one female), in Indiana with some overlap of symptoms and timing. Here are some pertinent posts:

http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/sho...54&postcount=5
http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/sho...6&postcount=38
http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/sho...&postcount=125

On February 17th, a 23-yr-old woman in Swissvale, PA reported an illness similar to the Le Roy Syndrome. She reported sudden onset of the illness occurred a few week prior.

[alert]

I believe Digger has reported that there is a previously named, unrelated, illness called "LeRoy Syndrome", so Dr. Trifiletti's choice of nomenclature may be poor.

[Laidback Al]

Thanks for taking the time to put together the update, Emily.

[Emily]

Originally Posted by Laidback Al

Thanks for taking the time to put together the update, Emily.

You are very welcome, Al. I needed to organize this material in my own mind, anyway.

Originally Posted by alert

I believe Digger has reported that there is a previously named, unrelated, illness called "LeRoy Syndrome", so Dr. Trifiletti's choice of nomenclature may be poor.

I'm sure this is just a working name for the syndrome and he'll change it if need be. I agree it might be a good idea if this advances. (I have wondered about pH1N1 playing a role in this if something truly new is emerging. It couldn't be the only factor, of course, but it is a new infectious agent. I found an interview with Dr. T that I'll post elsewhere and he said that there is some evidence that influenza can trigger PANDAS-like illness. These complexities are probably why the name PANDAS will be changed to PANS soon.)

The disease Digger might have found could be this one:
Stoll-Brodie-Fiessinger-Leroy Syndrome (Reiter’s Syndrome)
http://www.benthamscience.com/crr/sa...1-1/D0011R.pdf

The article says the illness is still called Reiter's to a large extent in English speaking countries. The reasons for changing the name are discussed in the article.

I found an interesting article here written by a psychologist who lives in Le Roy. He touches upon the tic outbreak and places it within the broader milieu of the town, whose greatest challenges are from the same broad economic and social forces weighing on many smaller communities in the country today.

http://thedailynewsonline.com/opinio...871e3ce6c.html

Joseph Langen: Le Roy, New York: A sleeping phoenix
Posted: Saturday, February 25, 2012 8:30 am | Updated: 12:35 am, Sat Feb 25, 2012.
By Dr. Joseph Langen

Too much sanity may be madness and the maddest of all, to see life as it is and not as it should be.

— Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra...

[Jonesie]

This chemical was my first thought.

But it could very well be a different chemical causing similar symptoms:

http://www.pan-uk.org/pestnews/Actives/chlorpyr.htm

[Pathfinder]

Teen's mystery symptoms linked to Lyme disease

By Cathleen F. Crowley

Published 06:02 p.m., Thursday, March 8, 2012

Doctors diagnosed Lori Brownell with Tourette's Syndrome, conversion disorder, anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder, but she didn't believe any of them. Especially the doctors who told her it was in her head.

The diagnosis she received on Tuesday, however, feels right: Lyme disease.

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/local/arti...#ixzz1oaNX886X

[Laidback Al]

Originally Posted by Pathfinder

. . . The diagnosis she received on Tuesday, however, feels right: Lyme disease. . .

I don't think that multiple etiologies can be ruled out. Perhaps Emily or Alert or other FluTrackers members who are closely following this outbreak will comment.

[alert]

What is notable about Lori and her friend is that they do not live in Le Roy, but in Corinth. It is very possible that the two cases in Corinth might have had nothing to do with the outbreak in Le Roy, especailly in light of the lack of any strong connections between the cases. Other reports in this thread indicate that Lori's friend, Alycia, may have actually been diagnosed with Tourette's as well.

Lyne disease as an etiology in at least some of the cases would also explain the preponderance of cases having outdoor exposures such as softball, cheerleading, and soccer, and would also explain why the entire teams did not get sick (only those bitten by infected ticks would).

This really does look a lot to me like that outbreak in China linked to about a hundred posts ago that was apparently due to about 6 different causes. We may very well be seeing the same thing here.

[Emily]

Lori tested positive for Ehrlichia, too.

They took her to a doctor in New Jersey to be tested and the results showed that Lori has Lyme and Ehrlichia, another tick-borne infection, said Tosha Brownell, Lori's mom.

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/local/arti...#ixzz1ocJkAVVX

It's a good thing she's finally getting treatment. Here's a fatal case in an undiagnosed 60-yr-old woman.

http://www.springerlink.com/content/2620p232l8428424/


Maryland Department of Health:
Laboratory Diagnosis of Tick-borne Diseases
"Ticks can harbor more than one disease-causing agent and diagnosis can be difficult"

[alert]

Here's what remains unclear at this point. At least 40-50% of the 22 cases have been given various diagnoses (including Lyme, Tourette's, PANDAS, and conversion disorder) and seem to be recovering. What is unclear is whether the remaining cases simply have not been diagnosed (and will fall into the existing categories), or whether there is a significant, still undiagnosed illness out there.

I can't help but notice that many of the diagnosed cases are in the "periphery" of the cluster; they may not attend the same school as the others (like Lori and Alycia), they may be an adult (like the 36-year-old woman), etc. It is conceivable that the main cluster (teenage girls in LeRoy who attend one specific school) could remain undiagnosed.

Only more time will tell which scenario we are in.

[corinthdad]

I'm the father of Alycia in Corinth NY . I have tried to post here for over a month now but it wouldn't let me. It seems you have still done a better job than most in getting the facts straight . I did bring Lori & Alycia of Corinth to see Dr T . I have posted a little on ACN forums under corinthdad.

[Laidback Al]

Originally Posted by corinthdad

I'm the father of Alycia in Corinth NY. I have tried to post here for over a month now but it wouldn't let me. It seems you have still done a better job than most in getting the facts straight. I did bring Lori & Alycia of Corinth to see Dr T. I have posted a little on ACN forums under corinthdad.

Welcome to FluTrackers and thanks for your positive comments. We are a nonprofit organization, we do not sell anything or accept any advertising, we are not medical professionals and we do not offer medical advice. Our primary mission is to provide accurate and timely information about disease outbreaks where ever they may occur.

We wish the best for your daughter, her friend Lori, and all the other individuals from Leroy and other locations that are suffering with similar symptoms.

[sharon sanders]

Originally Posted by corinthdad

I'm the father of Alycia in Corinth NY . I have tried to post here for over a month now but it wouldn't let me. It seems you have still done a better job than most in getting the facts straight . I did bring Lori & Alycia of Corinth to see Dr T . I have posted a little on ACN forums under corinthdad.

All the best to your family and all of the persons affected by these maladies.