Show 907: Ticks, Fleas & Mystery Disease

Most people are familiar with tick-borne diseases such as Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever or Lyme disease. But other diseases transmitted by ticks and fleas and biting flies may be flying under the radar. One such organism is called Bartonella.

More Than Cat Scratch Fever

Bartonella is known as the cause of cat scratch fever, but its significance is much greater. New research suggests that it may underlie many hard-to-treat conditions. Joint pain, brain fog and chronic fatigue may all be symptoms of a difficult-to-detect Bartonella infection. Might you have Bartonellosis?

This Week’s Guests:

Edward Breitschwerdt, DVM, is Professor of Internal Medicine at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine. He is a co-director of the Vector Borne Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, which has been testing animals for vector borne infections, including Bartonella, since 1984. He is chief scientific officer at Galaxy Diagnostics. He spoke to us previously in 2010 about other tickborne diseases.

B. Robert Mozayeni, MD, is a rheumatologist specializing in chronic inflammatory diseases with neurovascular as well as rheumatic manifestations. He is the founder and Executive Director of the Translational Medicine Group and chief medical officer of Galaxy Diagnostics.