Doctor in Tampa/Central Florida?

My son has had two bouts of Lyme disease in the past. His symptoms have returned and I am looking for an infectious disease doctor in the Tampa or central Florida area who can diagnose for Lyme.

[JackieCalifornia]

Welcome to MedHelp.  Sorry to hear about your son, but glad that he has you to watch out for him.  We don't post names of Lyme specialists in the open here because they are sometimes harassed by their local medical boards.  That said, you can look at the following websites for referral functions they have (or had -- sometimes they drop them).

ilads [dot] org --this is the main website for Lyme specialists, but don't know if they still have a referral function.

lymediseaseassociation [dot] org
truthaboutlymedisease [dot] com
lymenet [dot] org
chroniclymedisease [dot] com

A Lyme specialist (called casually a Lyme Literate MD, or LLMD) does not need to be an infectious disease doc, but can be any doc -- internist, GP, endocrinologist, etc. -- who takes a broad view of Lyme and the other diseases carried by the same ticks.  Infectious disease docs are officially among the strongest deniers of Lyme, because their trade group, Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) takes a very strong position that Lyme is hard to get and easy to cure, and if you're still sick after you've been treated, then that's too bad, but you're officially well, so goodbye.

That said, there are also some fringe ideas out there, because Lyme is the wild west currently:  there is much not known, and so-called mainstream medicine likes to lump the progressive thinkers with the fringe types.  Keep your antennae up, and change docs if you feel the need.

Best wishes -- let us know if we can help further.

[Mochucker]

Thanks for the advice!

The incidence of Lyme is lower here in Florida than other states. At least the REPORTED incidence is. Thus, less doctors who are willing to treat.

[JackieCalifornia]

I think you'll find it's a problem everywhere to get treated, and agreed that it's the reported incidence that is low.  Some states are running out of LLMDs because the medical boards are cracking down on those who treat outside IDSA "guidelines", like in Texas.  Other states have 'freedom of conscience' laws protecting MDs, but even there I think there is a fair amount of back-biting that goes on.

One of the problems with those 'reported' cases is that the IDSA long ago set its requirements to be diagnosed with Lyme very high, because it was supposed to be epidemiological data that would be beyond reproach, that is, the data would only include absolutely slam-dunk cases of fer-shure Lyme, so it required a tick, a circular rash, and other items that many of us don't get.  Those very high standards are now applied to everyone, and if you don't meet them, you don't get a diagnosis of Lyme, therefore no treatment.  I never saw my tick, never had a rash, but had one screamin' case of Lyme and a coinfection.  By IDSA standards, I would not have been treated, and indeed was not by a whole string of MDs.

Veterinarians, interestingly, are very up to date on Lyme and its incidence.  Someday the people docs may catch up.  Here's hoping!