thalia4.jpgThalia has lyme disease.

Her mother was also diagnosed with lyme disease…both are under treatment and doing fine. Guess they spend a lot of time around ticks (no, that wasn’t a jab at Tommy Mottola).

Is this why she has been missing in action?

We truly wish her the best while she deals with this.

What is Lyme disease exactly? CLICK HERE to find out.

From Wikipedia:

Lyme disease, or borreliosis, is an emerging infectious disease caused by at least three species of bacteria belonging to the genus Borrelia.[1] Borrelia burgdorferi is the predominant cause of Lyme disease in the United States, whereas Borrelia afzelii and Borrelia garinii are implicated in most European cases.

Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne disease in the Northern Hemisphere. Borrelia is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected hard ticks belonging to several species of the genus Ixodes.[2] Early manifestations of infection may include fever, headache, fatigue, depression, and a characteristic skin rash called erythema migrans. Left untreated, late manifestations involving the joints, heart, and nervous system can occur. In most cases, the infection and its symptoms are eliminated with antibiotics, especially if diagnosis and treatment occur early in the course of illness. Late, delayed, or inadequate treatment can lead to late manifestations of Lyme disease which can be disabling and difficult to treat.[3]

Some Lyme disease patients who have completed a course of antibiotic treatment continue to have symptoms such as severe fatigue, sleep disturbance, and cognitive difficulties. Some groups have argued that “chronic” Lyme disease is responsible for a range of medically unexplained symptoms beyond the objectively recognized manifestations of late Lyme disease, and that additional, long-term antibiotic treatment is warranted in such cases.[4] Of four randomized controlled trials of long-term antibiotic courses in patients with ongoing symptoms, two found no benefit[5][6], and two found inconsistent benefits and significant side effects and risks from further antibiotic treatment.[7][8][9] Most expert groups including the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the American Academy of Neurology have found that existing scientific evidence does not support a role for Borrelia nor ongoing antibiotic treatment in such cases