Rep. John Ward, DFL - Baxter, recently spoke at a meeting of the Brainerd chapter of the Minnesota Lyme Association and outlined new treatment guidelines from the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS).
The new guidelines encourage the adoption of new treatment approaches and were created because frequently-used antibiotics have had high failure rates.
"Lyme disease is still alive and thriving, especially in our area," said Rep. Ward. "It's become clear that a rigid, one-size-fits-all antibiotic regimen is not the answer and that Lyme disease patients need different treatments depending on the person. Lyme disease is difficult to diagnose and treat, and these new guidelines from ILADS are a great way to move forward." ILADS is the first organization to issue guidelines on Lyme disease based on the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Education (GRADE) process. This rigorous review format is used by other well-respected medical organizations, including the World Health Organization. ILADS also developed its guidelines with the goal of meeting the eight standards identified by the Institute of Medicine as being critical to the development of trustworthy guidelines.
"These new guidelines are evidence-based and would move us closer to a more patient-centered system of treating Lyme disease," said Dr. Elizabeth Maloney, a co-author of the new guidelines. "Patient-centered care will give physicians more options to meet the need of individual patients."
More details on the new guidelines can be found here: http://www.ilads.org/ilads_news/2014/new-standard-of-care-guidelines-for... .
