Dave Tierney
Dave was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) in January of 2007. A pilot with Delta Air Lines and a former Marine, he faced the possibility of losing his airline job because of this diagnosis. After self-administering weekly injections of the MS drug Avenox, his symptoms were not alleviated. Not convinced that he had MS, Dave began to research his symptoms on the internet. He found that Lyme disease symptoms closely matched his own. He recalled having two Erythema Migran’s (EM) rashes from unknown insect bites in the mid 1990’s while serving with the Marine Corps in North Carolina. As a Connecticut resident for 24 years, he knew he could have also been exposed to Lyme while living there. He then sought a specialized physician to evaluate the possibility of a Lyme disease diagnosis.
Dave made an appointment with Dr. Joseph Jemsek, a prominent Lyme disease specialist in the Charlotte area. After his symptoms and medical history were evaluated, Dr. Jemsek felt that Dave’s symptoms and medical findings presented a strong clinical case for persistent Lyme disease, or neuroborreliosis. After starting treatment with oral antibiotic regimens, Dave made little or no progress. A decision was made jointly to initiate IV antibiotic therapy and Dave was treated 3 times a weekly for approximately 14 weeks. After nearly a year off from his job, Dave was able to return to flying the friendly skies in February, 2008.
“I visited over 25 different doctors in the past 7 years. When I finally got the MS diagnosis, I was just ready to quit looking for another explanation. But as I became more ill while taking the MS drugs, I began to suspect that this was the wrong diagnosis. Had I not challenged my initial diagnosis of MS, I would still be suffering today. Doctors here in the South do not adequately consider Lyme disease when evaluating patients and their symptoms.”