Sidbury Lyme disease sufferer's call

By [kmanning] katy manning

A DEVON woman suffering from symptoms of Lyme disease is campaigning for a change in the guidelines for its treatment.

Stella Huyshe-Shires, from Sidbury, believes she is still suffering from the symptoms of the disease, which she was diagnosed with in 2002.

The condition, which is caused by a bacteria transmitted by the bite of an infected tick, can occur if the body does not fight off the infection and the bacteria get into the central nervous system.

Mrs Huyshe-Shires, who is in her late 50s, suffers from a stiff neck and pain in her upper back, gets pains down the back of one leg, has swollen hands and finger joints, dry eyes and a dry mouth.

A former IT worker for the NHS, she has been retired on the grounds of ill health. Although Mrs Huyshe-Shires was treated, she believes she has not been properly cured — but cannot be treated further because of guidelines governing the use of antibiotics. She wants the Department of Health to establish clinical trials into the effect of long-term antibiotic treatment for the condition.

Mrs Huyshe-Shires says doctors in the UK follow the advice of the Health Protection Agency, which adheres to guidelines set by the Infectious Diseases Society of America. The guidelines state that patients should take antibiotics for no longer than 28 days.

As a member of Lyme Disease Action, Mrs Huyshe-Shires has lobbied MPs to change the rules.

The group’s campaign has the backing of South West MPs including Hugo Swire and Julia Goldsworthy, who last year raised an Early Day Motion to draw up UK guidelines for diagnosis and treatment.

Mrs Huyshe-Shires said: “I want to do something about it. I think it’s ludicrous I have to have a reduced life when I believe there is a cure.”

Mrs Huyshe-Shires believes the Department of Health should set UK guidelines for treating the condition. “We currently use the guidelines drawn up for the US,” she said. “In Europe, three different bacteria cause the disease, in the US, there is only one.”

A spokeswoman for the Health Protection Agency confirmed it gets its guidelines from the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Dr Marina Morgan, a consultant microbiologist at the RD&E, said: “All antibiotics have potentially serious side effects, and to lessen the chance of breeding multi-resistant bacteria we only use antibiotics when absolutely necessary.

“But we should always treat the patient as an individual, weighing up the risks and benefits of therapy.”