This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

Runners, Walkers and Politicians Raise Lyme Awareness

Sunday's 5K focused attention on the disease and drew hundreds to the race at the NCC.

On Sunday, 500 runners and walkers gathered at the National Conference Center in Leesburg to participate in Loudoun’s first Lyme 5K and educational fair, which is intended to be an annual event. The race aims to raise awareness about the prevalence of Lyme disease in Northern Virginia and the difficulty in diagnosing and treating it. Several local politicians attended the event and spoke on the subject.

“In 2009, when I ran for office I talked about this issue and received so much feedback from people.  Everyone knows someone with Lyme disease, but we need to bring even more awareness to the issue,” said Del. Barbara Comstock (R-34).

Steve Gotschi, owner of DryHome Roofing and Siding in Sterling, started the race/walk after watching his wife struggle with the disease.

Find out what's happening in Ashburnwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

“He was inspired to do something to help others,” said Shawn Flaherty, who assisted in organizing the event.

Currently there is no organized group effort for Lyme disease awareness and funding, so Gotschi and fellow organizers hope the 5K can serve that purpose.

Find out what's happening in Ashburnwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

According to the National Capital Lyme Disease Association, which was the beneficiary of funds raised by the race, Lyme is one of the fastest-growing infectious diseases in the nation. Loudoun County itself has the third-largest number of Lyme disease cases in the country. Twenty-two percent of Virginia’s reported cases come from Loudoun County.

“I became concerned about the disease three years ago when I was made aware of the issue by a constituent who was having difficulty getting proper medical care,” said Delegate Tom Rust (R-86).  “Loudoun is a hot spot for the disease.”

Del. Rust introduced legislation in 2010 that would allow doctors to prescribe long-term antibiotic treatment to patients suffering from Lyme disease without fear of retribution, but it failed.

“The Lyme community supported the bill,” Rust said, but others opposed it. “There is a split in the medical community.”

Currently, there is a commission studying the issue.

”I am hopeful that the Lyme Commission report brings more attention to the issue and puts it on the front burner,” said Comstock, who helped introduce the original bill with Rust.

Lyme sufferers like Tim Holdaway who attended the race with his family, hope that such events, along with support from local politicians will help to bring awareness to the general community as well as the medical community.

“There is growing awareness and a lot of advocates that are working hard to bring awareness,” Holdaway said. “There needs to be more medical training in diagnosing Lyme because there are tremendous numbers of people affected who have not been diagnosed.”

Holdaway suffered symptoms like joint swelling, fever, headaches and a generally ill feeling for years before he was properly diagnosed.

“I even asked a doctor if he thought it could be Lyme and he said ‘no,’” Holdaway said.

Claudia Reda, with the NCLDA, agrees that there needs to be more medical training and more aggressive types of treatment. When her son was diagnosed with the disease seven years ago, the complications that he faced caused her to worry that she was “losing him to the disease.”

“We need more Lyme literate doctors and more aggressive treatments,” Reda said. “Thankfully, Loudoun has been aggressive in dealing with Lyme disease,” she said. “But because the disease is so hard to detect it is not fully recognized yet.”

Lyme Disease is an inflammatory disease transmitted by bacteria-infected ticks. Ticks become infected with the bacteria after feeding on white-footed mice and other small animals. Early human infection symptoms include headaches, a stiff neck, fever, muscle aches and fatigue. Late symptoms include joint pain and swelling, heart disease, neurological problems, dizziness, irritability, memory and concentration problems, and muscle weakness.

Monte Skall, also with the NCLDA, suggested a new series of education material that local health departments could distribute as a solution for preventing Lyme Disease.

“I’ve traveled all over the state listening to patients. It became apparent that education is the best prevention,” Skall said.

Another member of NCLDA, Nancy Brooks, contracted Lyme disease in Oregon but went nearly ten years before she was diagnosed in Maryland, discovering the infection by accident.

“I was going to see a neurological feedback specialist in Maryland,” she explained. “We need to get the word out so that people who are undiagnosed don’t go as long as I did without finding out.”

In addition to the 5K run/walk, the Loudoun Lyme 5K sponsored an education fair. Lyme disease experts with the NCLDA, the Loudoun County Health Department, the Western Loudoun Lyme Support Group and Marjorie Veiga and Dr. Sarah Fletcher were present. Other fair vendors included Babcock I-Commerce Group, Backyard Bug Patrol, Capital One Bank, Leesburg Pharmacy, McEnearney Associates Inc. Realtors, Moley Brothers Q-Pit, Pre-Paid Legal Services Inc. and Servis Pros Pest Management.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?