Category Archives: Treatment

Unknown's avatar lassesen 9:35 pm on December 26, 2013  

Why Jadin’s Antibiotics Protocol usually work — Pasteur Institute got the solution right and the explanation wrong?

My second onset of CFS was resolved by following Dr. Celile Jadin. The decision to do a combo Hemex-Jadin protocol was that neither were in conflict with each other — in fact, at the start, they appear to compliment each other. For example bromelain breaks down coagulation and it also allows deeper penetration of antibiotics into tissues.

The Jadin protocol originated with Pasteur Institute staff in Africa dealing with difficult illnesses. I suspect that by trial and error they found a protocol that address the stubborn illness they were trying to treat. As is human nature, they wanted to know why and once a reasonable explanation was found, that became the explanation of what was happening. I know from the history of science that explanations are often wrong, but the observations and many predictions are right.

My best hypothesis on CFS is currently a stable dysfunctional microbiota (gut flora) that was triggered by an illness, poor diet, vaccination or chemical exposure.  It is good to put this hypothesis to the test against prior successful treatments that resulted in some remissions. I have already looked at this in an earlier post, but thought a revisit on certain aspects would be good.

Jadin and Occult Infections

Cecile Jadin, M.D., has had great success with an antibiotic rotation that the Pasteur Institute had used 70 years ago to deal with what they felt were occult infections[Presentation].  In reflection, I can very well see how they came to that conclusion.  If the symptoms of an infection that was successfully treated returned but cannot be detected then a reasonable assumption was that it was somehow “occult” or hidden.  If you shift your perspective to the symptoms not being caused directly by the infection but by the alteration in the gut bacteria that the infection caused then it is not the infection returning in a hidden form — it is the gut bacteria alteration becoming stable in the “disease pattern”. Without modern research testing facilities, it is impossible to differeniate them.

What does going through multiple families of antibiotics do to gut bacteria?  Kill many of them. Many people will not take antibiotics because they kill gut bacteria — not all gut bacteria, just some species. Her regime of rotating antibiotics is a perfect way of disrupting this stable bacteria alteration.

  • I constructed the table below ‘unscientifically’ by just googling the antibiotic family and the bacteria family and seeing what the usual result was. The impact of the families of antibiotic appears  to be a good match for what we want to have happen. Jadin’s protocol was based on experimentation on people with the appearance of occult illness due to Rickettsia. They did not have the labs we have. They found traces of Rickettsia in the tissue and went down a logical path that said “Oh we have a resistant version — we need to try other antibiotics!” This was exactly the logic that my MD used for my first onset of CFS (before it was a known condition).
Antibiotic FamilyKlebsiella/EnterobacterEnterococcusStreptococcusE.ColiBifidobacteriumLactobacillusScore for CFS
In CFS PatientsHIGHHIGHHIGHlowlowlow*
TetracyclinesEffectiveResistantResistantResistantResistantResistant1
MacrolidesEffectiveResistantResistantResistantResistantResistant1
QuinoloneResistantEffectiveResistantResistantResistantEffective-1
MetronidazoleEffectiveResistantResistantEffectiveResistantResistant-1

Other Antibiotics (by request). Score done by 1 for each EFFECTIVE in high (good) and -2 for each EFFECTIVE in low (I view the harm is more significant than the good)

Antibiotic FamilyKlebsiella/EnterobacterEnterococcusStreptococcusE.ColiBifidobacteriumLactobacillusScore for CFS
In CFS PatientsHIGHHIGHHIGHlowlowlow*
AmoxycillinResistant [*]Effective[*]EffectiveResistantEffective[*]Effective[*]-2
SilverResistantEffectiveEffectiveResistantEffectiveEffective-2
Lactobacillus probiotics (General)Resistant [2014]Resistant [2014]EffectiveEffectiveEffective—-3

What is seen is that the probable over growths are reduced with this protocol as reported in the 1998 Conference Presentation, and most of the under growths are not impacted. Similar results were reported for two species: “The viable count of D-lactic acid producing Enterococcus and Streptococcus spp. in the faecal samples from the CFS group.. were significantly higher than those for the control group ” Increased d-lactic Acid intestinal bacteria in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome. [2009]

In short, Jadin’s effective protocol is in agreement with the microbiota model.  It is a viable protocol to use in conjunction with probiotics – just don’t use Mutaflor (E.Coli Nissle 1917) with Metronidazole, or L.Reuteri with Quinolones.

Unknown's avatar lassesen 4:53 am on December 26, 2013
Tags: 000999uuquuqyshshshx, utututyyyyyyyy777777   

Celebrex with Valtrex: A PubMed review

Raoul T wrote on Health Rising asked me:

Hi Ken, Maybe I was over reacting but i was intrigued to learn about the feature “Big Antiviral Trial Could Usher in New Treatment Era for FM” on Health Rising a couple of weeks ago discussing the promising use of Celebrex with Valtrex as a new and effective strategy for FM and CFS. I just wondered what you opinion on this might be. Are there significant heath risks associated with Celebrex? If so are there any good alternatives? Has anyone you know tried or had success using this therapy?
 

This is a difficult question to answer well in comments, so I am answering in a post. I am also declaring that I am evaluating it against my current model of CFS is: a stable dysfunction of microbiota.

Celebrex is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID – i.e. acteaminophen like) and selective COX-2 inhibitor.  Valacycloviris an antiviral drug effective against several members of the Herpes family (which is associated with some CFS sub-populations).

To test against the model, I grab my microflora grid:

Antibiotic Family Klebsiella/Enterobacter Enterococcus Streptococcus E.Coli Bifidobacterium Lactobacillus
In CFS Patients HIGH HIGH HIGH low low low
Celebrex N/I INCREASE N/I INCREASE REDUCES (?) N/I
Valacyvlovir N/I N/I N/I N/I N/I N/I
Herpes Virus:
  • N/I – No Information
  • (?) Study is not clear (drug combination involved so uncertainity

On the other side, the presence of the virus does impact the microbiota [2013],[2008], [2013]

For CFS, there are three studies on Valacyclovir – all done by a team lead by AM Lerner:

And one with Fibromyalgia – “No effect of antiviral (valacyclovir) treatment in fibromyalgia: a double blind, randomized study.”[2004] “Valacyclovir cannot be recommended as a therapy for FM at this point.” and none for IBS.

Bottom Line

This treatment appears effective for a minority subset of those matching a research definition of CFS (and likely an even smaller number of the general CFS population). Appropriate testing should occur before the start and if the results of the testing does not match that of the subset, it is best not to proceed with this treatment.  I am opposed to “well, it’s not an exact match — but let us try it anyway” approach of some MDs.

Unknown's avatar lassesen 10:12 pm on December 24, 2013  

Sleep Apnea and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Sleep Apnea is a diagnosis du jour. It occurs in over 30% of the population for one type, Obstructive Sleep Apnea[2008], with a much higher rate for older individuals (at least 44%) and overweight individuals. The incidence for men is almost three times the incidence for women (the opposite ratio seen for CFS). Nose cartilage grows with age which is one factor for the increasing incidence. The article Sleep apnea as the cause of chronic fatigue syndrome [1994] suffers from the title being read and not the content (which speculates that it should be investigated and is not a demonstrated fact).

These common medical conditions have a higher incidence of sleep apnea: type 2 diabetes [68,69], polycystic ovary syndrome [70–72], refractory hypertension [73], coronary artery disease [74–76], congestive heart failure with systolic dysfunction [77–79], and stroke [80–82].  Wait, CFS, IBS and FM are not in this list.

CFS and Sleep Apnea share some common symptoms: fatigue, depression. A health professional can easily mis-conclude that Sleep Apnea is the cause of CFS — because: more than 50% of CFS patients have sleep apnea (the fact that more than 50% of age and weight match healthy population have sleep apnea is ignored).

  • Undiagnosed and comorbid disorders in patients with presumed chronic fatigue syndrome. [2013] found that ~ 30% of patients that met the Fukuda criteria for CFS had any sleep disorders.  This is the same rate reported elsewhere for the general population.
  • Sleep apnea and psychological functioning in chronic fatigue syndrome. [2009] found “Participants (CFS, SAHS, controls) completed questionnaires and were evaluated for SAHS ( sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome ); 68 percent were subsequently diagnosed with SAHS. CFS participants with and without SAHS did not differ”. Again, CFS incidence matches that of the general population
  • Sleep disorders in patients with chronic fatigue. [1994]  “In conclusion, chronically fatigued patients with suggestive symptoms may have potentially treatable coexisting sleep disorders that are not associated with meeting criteria for CFS or a current psychiatric disorder.” This is a round-about way of saying that there is no detectable relationship between the incidence of CFS and the incidence of sleep disorders.

So bottom line:  sleep apnea is independent of having Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I know a person that was given a CFS (and a Lyme diagnosis) that recovered when treated for sleep apnea. This is not surprising because most medical professionals (apart from rigorous research professionals) tend not to follow published criteria or do the tests that should show a problem that is CFS, namely:

  • Very high 1,25D levels — this is an autoimmune indicator (does not indicate which one)
  • SPECT scan having major abnormalities (MRI will be normal)
  • Inherited Coagulation Defects and hypercoagulation when the full panel of tests are done (often only one or two are done)

Many of my readers may have sleep apnea, or any one of a dozen treatable conditions that share symptoms with CFS. You may wish to review your medical tests that indicate if you have CFS. If none of the above have been done — approach your MD to order one of them. If the result is negative, you may wish to press for a second one of them. If all three are negative — then you likely have a different condition (which your MD may not like — because he will need to identify it and treat you!)

Unknown's avatar lassesen 8:29 pm on December 22, 2013  

Autoimmune Diseases: Infrared Saunas

During my relapse, Costco had a sale on for Infrared Sauna which triggered a memory of them being significantly helpful for CFS or IBS. After confirming that on PubMed we purchased one as our Christmas present and used it daily (which may have helped with my remission further).  With the Multiple Chemical Sensitivity relapse triggered over Thanksgiving, we have found that it has been very helpful for improving symptoms. In one sense, this should be “common sense” obvious — you sweat out the chemicals that you are sensitive too!

I tend to be very skeptical about “common sense”, especially after hearing all of the common sense cures for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome coming from family, friends and medical professionals. So a review of the current literature on PubMed felt like a good activity to do as a one-year after report to the community. We still use it (although not as frequently as we should — unless there is a flare).

Technically it is called Far Infrared Radiation although the alternative types have been known to use the terms  “biogenetic radiation” and “biogenetic rays”; in Japan as  “Waon therapy”; in Italy, “phytothermotherapeutic treatment”. This radiation have a lot of low level effect on biological organisms and process. There is evidence that it will help some cancers and encourage other cancers [2012].

Studies have shown for human or animal studies that it helps[2012] for following auto-immune (or associated to) conditions:

  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Diabetes Type II [2010]
  • Ankylosing spondylitis [2009]
  • Allergic rhinitis
  • Fibromyalgia [2009], [2008] “All patients experienced a significant reduction in pain by about half after the first session of Waon therapy “,
  • Chronic Fatigue Syndrome [2007] [2005]
  • Sjögren syndrome [2007]
  • Mild depression [2005]
  • Chronic Pain [2005]

There were no FIR studies located for Irritable Bowel Syndrome, IBD, UC or Crohn’s — although inference would suggest those would likely also benefit. However we do find some related articles:

I was also surprised to find Behavioral treatment of irritable bowel syndrome: a 1-year follow-up study[1986] and then found some 33 articles looking at psychological treatment for  functional gastrointestinal disorders. The studies are likely valid – in that stress chemicals results in the microbiota changing (and thus we would get statistical results saying that it improves it). Not a single study found that it resulted in remission.   This is an important catcha looking at treatments: many treatments may improve most conditions by altering some process that produces a symptom; the treatment may be totally irrelevant to remission of the condition.

What I could not find was any studies on shifts of human microflora (gut bacteria) as a result of the thermal treatment. There was several studies on the successful use of heat (SECCA procedure) for the treatment of fecal incontinence however the latest studies[2009] found that the SECCA procedure had 87% of patients with complications and earlier success was not repeated.

Unknown's avatar lassesen 2:02 am on December 22, 2013  

Catecholamines, Heart Palpitations, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Bacteria

Health Rising recently had a nice article published on Nov 1, 2013 on the research of Dr.Visser on this common symptoms of CFS patients. Later in the month there was also a video.

Reading the article, I noted that catecholamines appears to be a significant part of the symptom. Catecholamines is a family of chemicals consisting of  epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine and hydrocortisone: cortisol. This caused me to wonder what we knew about the microflora and catecholamines. A search on PubMed found 1880 articles — too much information for most people!

Articles summarizes what I was expecting “These results indicate that gut microbiota play a critical role in the generation of free CA[catecholamines] in the gut lumen.” [2012] and a treatment that some would like: ” Dark chocolate reduced the urinary excretion of the stress hormone cortisol and catecholamines and partially normalized stress-related differences in energy metabolism (glycine, citrate, trans-aconitate, proline, beta-alanine) and gut microbial activities (hippurate and p-cresol sulfate)….   a daily consumption of 40 g of dark chocolate during a period of 2 weeks is sufficient to modify…” [2009]

And their impact on species typically overgrown in CFS is significant [2002], which is why stress often worsen CFS symptoms — the overgrowth increases.

It is interesting to read the NIH list of items that increases catecholamines (and thus risk of palpitations)

  • Acetaminophen (Tylenol, Paracetamol, Anacin)
  • Albuterol
  • Aminophylline
  • Amphetamines
  • Buspirone
  • Caffeine
  • Calcium channel blockers
  • Cocaine
  • Cyclobenzaprine
  • Levodopa
  • Methyldopa
  • Nicotinic acid (large doses)
  • Phenoxybenzamine
  • Phenothiazines
  • Pseudoephedrine
  • Reserpine
  • Tricyclic antidepressants

The only thing listed for reducing were prescription drugs.  However, a little research on PubMed found

During the research I found 1 2013 article: “Plant-based medicines for anxiety disorders, part 2: a review of clinical studies with supporting preclinical evidence“, which list some familiar herbs and some new-to-me ones that were deemed to be effective in the studies reviewed  (Yes — an already researched list!). I am assuming that their mechanism is reducing catecholamines levels.

  •  Piper methysticum [Kava]
  • Matricaria recutita, [German Chamomile]
  • Ginkgo biloba, [Ginkgo]
  • Scutellaria lateriflora, [Blue skullcap]
  • Silybum marianum, [Milk thistle]
  • Passiflora incarnata, [Purple Passionflower]
  • Withania somniferum, [Ashwagandha]
  • Galphimia glauca, [Thryallis]
  • Centella asiatica, [Centella]
  • Rhodiola rosea, [Rosavin]
  • Echinacea spp., [Echinacea]
  • Melissa officinalis [Lemon Balm]
  • Echium amoenum [Borage]

Each has different chemicals, so it you have regular palpitations — you may wish to discuss with your medical profession about trying each of these for a week to see if any has a positive effect.