The International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) Statement

The members of the International Lyme and Associated Disease
Society stand in full support of the work of Dr. Joseph Burrascano.
We recognize Dr. Burrascano as an international leader in the
establishment of guidelines for the treatment of tick-borne illnesses,
including Lyme disease.  Dr. Burrascano’s frequently updated
treatment guidelines have been the backbone of patient management
since their inception and have been found to be effective and
successful in the treatment of patients with these complaints.

As with any emerging disease, the diagnosis, treatment, and
management of Lyme disease is the totality if the physician’s
training, skill, and clinical judgement.  We formally oppose the
rigid diagnostic treatment guidelines being currently advocated
to treat the complexity of  vector-borne illnesses.  Most importantly,
these guidelines are outdates and contrary to what the current
medical research has shown to be true regarding the chronicity
and persistence of tick-borne illnesses.  The thousands of patients
physically and mentally disabled by these diseases stand testimony t
o this fact.

We believe that the proceedings against Dr. Burrascano
represent a bias which favors insurance companies and special
interest groups, and are contrary to the basic scientific principles
of medicine.  Unfortunately, the original hypothesis regarding Lyme
disease as an easily treated disease ha not held true.  To continue to
blindly follow this tenet, ignoring current research, jeapordizes the
lives of patients with this illness.

In many cases, patients with tick-borne illnesses have been victimized
not only by the disease, but also by medical politics.  The members
of ILADS believe that the treatment of these illnesses needs to exist
in a non-threatening atmosphere where doctors can be free to
exchange their ideas and treat patients based on evolving scientific
evidence.  We feel that an impartial investigation into the adverse
influence and politics which resulted in the OPMC hearing against
Dr. Burrascano is mandatory.

ILADS Page: www.ilads.org