Please see the letter below addressed to the Chair of the Tick Borne Disease Working Group who recently published another misleading Lyme disease study. This is particularly disturbing because the life-altering/life-threatening consequences of untreated Lyme are conveniently overlooked like they have been for nearly four decades. Letter to John Aucott, MD: ---------- Original Message ---------- From: Carl Tuttle To: olx1@cdc.gov, tickbornedisease@hhs.gov, jaucott2@jhmi.edu, kbechto1@jhmi.edu Cc: mark.dayton@state.mn.us, daniel.tillson@mail.house.gov, kvf1@comcast.net, iturko@umd.edu, allen.l.richards.civ@mail.mil, richard.wolitski@hhs.gov, scott.cooper@cms.hhs.gov, khoney@stanford.edu, ddutko@hanszenlaporte.com, kalachakra108@aol.com, chris.smith@mail.house.gov, adam.durand@mail.house.gov, marisa.kovacs@mail.house.gov, info@smith4nj.com, matt.hadro@mail.house.gov, tamir.elnabarawy@mail.house.gov, ddiallo@sisterlove.org, collin.peterson@mail.house.gov, cbb0@cdc.gov, estella.jones@fda.hhs.gov, dennis.dixon1@nih.hhs.gov, smithr@mmc.org, mary.noonan@mail.house.gov, james.berger@hhs.gov, vanila.singh@hhs.gov, lise.nigrovic@childrens.harvard.edu, sdonta@comcast.net, wendyadams1@gmail.com, don.wright@hhs.gov, ptourad1@jhmi.edu Date: June 29, 2018 at 8:19 AM Subject: Cognitive Decline in Post-treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome Cognitive Decline in Post-treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome Touradji P, Aucott JN, Yang T, Rebman AW, Bechtold KT. /Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology/, online first 2018 Jun 26. https://doi.org/10.1093/arclin/acy051 Objective Patient-reported cognitive complaints are common in those with post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome (PTLDS). Method We enrolled a case series of 124 patients with confirmed PTLDS defined by Infectious Diseases Society of America-proposed case definition. Conclusions PTLDS-related cognitive decline remains mild. June 29, 2018 Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD Attn: John Nathaniel Aucott, M.D. Director of the Johns Hopkins Lyme Disease Clinical Research Center Dear Dr. Aucott, There has been a thirty year fixation on the acute stage of Lyme disease after early treatment. [1] As a doctor, you should be well aware that untreated strep throat progresses to rheumatic fever causing irreversible heart damage. What happens to the Lyme patient who went months, years or decades before diagnosis? Perhaps you missed the news that singer/songwriter Kris Kristofferson was being treated for Alzheimer's disease which turned out to be undiagnosed Lyme. A Slow Slipping AwayKris Kristofferson’s Long Undiagnosed Battle with Lyme Disease. https://www.lymedisease.org/members/lyme-times/2016-fall-news/kris-kristofferson-lyme-disease/ Your study like so many others over the past three decades avoids this class of debilitated patient who missed early treatment and became disabled. Your study results are then assumed to apply to the entire patient population giving the impression that Lyme is no big deal…just some “mild cognitive decline.” This is a continuation of the racketeering scheme identified in the SHRADER & ASSOCIATES, LLP RICO lawsuit where the ongoing disinformation campaign is aimed at promoting the idea that Lyme is little more than a nuisance disease (Aches and pains of daily living) Lyme disease has been misclassified as a low-risk and non-urgent health issue as there are no Public Service Announcements informing the public that you could become horribly disabled or die from Lyme disease. What is the motivation for downplaying the severity of Lyme disease Dr. Aucott? Carl Tuttle Lyme Endemic Hudson, NH References 1. SUBJECTIVE SYMPTOMS AFTER TREATMENT OF LYME DISEASE Gary P. Wormser, New York Medical College https://www.dropbox.com/s/94jv3w2hb0z9lv7/Email%20sent%20to%20the%20Office%20of%20Research%20Integrity.docx?dl=0