Medical Mystery

The first doctor who gave his opinion was very unprofessional, both in his diction and critical thinking skills. That is what we who suffer from this horrific disease have had to contend with, over and over. His lack of scientific, unbiased approach has probably misdiagnosed many other clients who also sought his services,l, not just Morgellon victims. Bordering on malpractice, definitely immoral. Deb in SD.

Last February, I began to get "bites" around my wrists and ankles. I'm an avid gardener here in FL. At the same time we added a couple dogs to the family. The sores would emerge very quickly with an intense itch, even without scratching, I could see the redness begin. Soon I had sores that popped open by themselves, particularly in the shower. The "scabs" were never like a normal cut or scape, and the underlying sore NEVER healed. Finally I saw two dermatologist, both of whom informed me that it was all in my head. Sure it was, at 52, I decided that there was nothing better to do than to randomly scratch holes through my skin! I've studied my sores and I have seen odd things in them which match some of the pictures from Morgellons websites. But I also believe that I could be dealing with chiggers; I notice that I will get a bunch of new itch sores after working in the mulched soil or if I let one of the dogs sit with me. Sores have slowly spread so now almost all of me has some. I resist scratching because I know it will only aggrevate them and/or cause scarring. Even if we are all nuts, I'm glad the CDC is looking into this. Contact me if you wish at tchb on aol.

Last February, I began to get "bites" around my wrists and ankles. I'm an avid gardener here in FL. At the same time we added a couple dogs to the family. The sores would emerge very quickly with an intense itch, even without scratching, I could see the redness begin. Soon I had sores that popped open by themselves, particularly in the shower. The "scabs" were never like a normal cut or scape, and the underlying sore NEVER healed. Finally I saw two dermatologist, both of whom informed me that it was all in my head. Sure it was, at 52, I decided that there was nothing better to do than to randomly scratch holes through my skin! I've studied my sores and I have seen odd things in them which match some of the pictures from Morgellons websites. But I also believe that I could be dealing with chiggers; I notice that I will get a bunch of new itch sores after working in the mulched soil or if I let one of the dogs sit with me. Sores have slowly spread so now almost all of me has some. I resist scratching because I know it will only aggrevate them and/or cause scarring. Even if we are all nuts, I'm glad the CDC is looking into this. Contact me if you wish at tchb on aol.

I suffered for twenty years before doctors finally diagnosed me with diffuse Sclerderma and Reynaud's symdrome. When doctors decide you are mentally unstable not sick they make you sick. Do you become "a little obsessive"? YES you do because you are sick and no one believes you or tries to help you in any way. If Police Forensics can't identify these fibers that come from all over the US, perhaps these close minded doctors should pay attentionto their patients>?

Where would we be if not for those in any field who were willing or open minded enough to actually examine possibilities?! There are those who make a difference and there are those who follow their lead. There are doctors who research and continue contributing to medical research and are willing to think outside the box. That's what is needed here. There is another dermatologist in Texas who diagnosed leishmaniasis in his patients in an area where it was not normally seen (Dallas). That's good "doctoring"! I'm hopeful that the CDC and the team gathered for research into this medical mystery will be able to identify whatever is causing so much suffering and debilitation in people with this condition that has been labeled "morgellons". The fibers are only a piece of the puzzle. There are multiple symptoms to go along with that aspect and from what I understand, not everyone has the fiber component, at least visibly. I commend all physicians, biologists, researchers and any others who are involved in the investigation of "morgellons". Thank you Newsweek and Jenny Hontz for helping with that cause. Where would we be today if we had always accepted the status quo and made a habit of sticking our heads in the sand?!

I don't have Morgellons thankfully, but have followed the publishing of findings and investigations on it. I guess we can only hope that enough dermatologists get the disease and hope that this will give them a desire to understand more about it and find a solution.

Thank you to Jenny Hontz for a well balanced article. A Morgellons Medical/Scientific Conference will be held in Austin, TX on March 29, 2008 and I am sure Dr. Meffert will come to educate himself on what is known and what is not known about Morgellons. I'm an ICU Nurse and this stuff doesn't even look like textile or dust under a microscope. Dr. Meffert, please consider attending this conference . It's not far from you.
http://www.thenmo.org/Austin308.htm
You have used pictures of me to discredit this disease so please come and take a look with the use of a dermatoscope. Do you think that external contaminants would be present in dermatopathology reports after all that a skin biopsy undergoes in the lab? My path reports say.."cross sections of textile fibers". This is determined by "looking" not by "testing". Do you see this a lot the the path reports from your patient's biopsies?
Cindy Casey, RN

Wow !!! What close-minded arrogance on the part of Dr. Jeffrey Meffert in his ridicule of his patients who complain of Morgellons disease. He represents everything that is wrong with the medical profession today. He dismisses these people as delusional simply because " no-one knows how to deal with them." Well thank you for your help Dr God ! I pretty much gave up on Drs. years ago after years of re-occuring and increasingly serious sinus infections. I had pages of visits with my local Dr who was making a small fortune on this alone. After a particularly exasperating trip from work to the emergency room when I was convinced it had progressed into pneumonia.. and getting yet another course of antibiotics which had only a temporary effect.. I finally asked the people at my health food store for help.. and they said "Don't you know about Echinacea?" I didn't, but started taking it and have never been bothered by sinus infections since.. and that was many years ago. I asked my Dr if he knew about this herb, and he didn't have a clue ! Drs. are great for patching you up... but forget about it when it comes to disease. Have we found the cure for Cancer yet ??? I'm willing to bet that the CDC study will show that in fact Morgellons disease is real, in spite of what all the doubting mini-gods say!

If you think you are suffering from Morgellons, you can find help at http://morgellons-sanctum.org/forum/index.php
Morgellons Sanctum is an online community providing an atmosphere of hope and healing.