Why Haven't I Ever Heard of Biotoxins, Neurotoxins or Biotoxin Illness Before?
You probably have heard of it, only it was called something else like Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFIDS), Fibromyalgia, Chronic Lyme Disease (CLD), Mold Illness, or ADHD (see "Other Names for Biotoxin Illnesses" below). The discoveries and the science behind how biotoxins and neurotoxins are involved in these illnesses and disorders is fairly new. The goal of this site is to provide information to both patients and physicians, to increase awareness regarding causes of Biotoxin Illness and highlight new clinical treatment discoveries. In the few months our new site has been up, we have reached many people, mainly in the United States and Europe. Many MD's are adopting Dr. Shoemaker's protocols and we are working on providing formal training for those individuals. Biotoxin Illness is still controversial and we are working to publish new peer-reviewed papers that can start to change the way doctors currently think. In the meantime, patients must continue to advocate for their rights and pursue the treatments that they feel are best for them. Ritchie Shoemaker, MD presented some fairly recent Chronic Fatigue research and treatment findings at The International Association for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome conference held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in January of 2007. We have also just completed a soon to be published ground-breaking study on the health effects of mold exposure. Many progressive doctors around the country endorse the use of our on-line BIRS© test and the cholestyramine-based treatment protocol pioneered by Ritchie Shoemaker, MD. Remember though, that medical advances are ultimately driven through peer-reviewed publication in medical journals. These studies are expensive and time consuming and our recent peer-reviewed publications will help advance these discoveries into mainstream medicine. Many more doctors are becoming aware of biotoxins and the role they play in chronic illness.
That said, many leading experts in mold illness and exposure, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFIDS), fibromyalgia and Acute or Chronic Lyme Disease (CLD) are familiar with, and use our screening test and cholestyramine protocol. For example, Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum, Chief Medical Officer of the Fibro and Fatigue Center Clinics, has included a chapter on Dr. Ritchie Shoemaker's biotoxin discoveries and how they relate to CFIDS and Fibroymylgia in the updated revision of his book titled From Fatigued to Fantastic!, which was published in 2007. Additionally, Dr. Shoemaker testified about the human health effects of mold exposure for the US Congress in January of 2006.
Biotoxins play a large role in Chronic Lyme Disease (CLD) and our research in this area is recognized by many preeminent Lyme Literate MD's (LLMD's). A recent presentation summarizing the role of biotoxins in Lyme Disease was given by ILADS member Eric Gordon, MD and is available by clicking here . Another example is found in the monograph Diagnostic Hints and Treatment Guidelines for Lyme and Other Tick Borne Illnesses , published in 2005 by Joseph Burrascano, MD, (click here for the webcast of Dr. Burrascano speaking about Neurotoxins/Biotoxins in Lyme Disease. He acknowledges that:
"Two groups have reported evidence that Borrelia, like several other bacteria, produce neurotoxins. These compounds reportedly can cause many of the symptoms of encephalopathy, cause an ongoing inflammatory reaction manifested as some of the virus-like symptoms common in late Lyme, and also potentially interfere with hormone action by blocking hormone receptors. At this time, there is no assay available to detect whether this compound is present, nor can the amount of toxin be quantified. Indirect measures are currently employed, such as measures of cytokine activation and hormone resistance. A visual contrast sensitivity test (VCS test) reportedly is quite useful in documenting CNS effects of the neurotoxin, and to follow effects of treatment. This test is available at some centers and on the internet.
It has been said that the longer one is ill with Lyme, the more neurotoxin is present in the body. It probably is stored in fatty tissues, and once present, persists for a very long time. This may be because of enterohepatic circulation, where the toxin is excreted via the bile into the intestinal tract, but then is reabsorbed from the intestinal tract back into the blood stream. This forms the basis for treatment."
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