Premium
Chronic Lyme disease: in defense of the scientific enterprise
Author(s) -
Baker Phillip J.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fj.10-167247
Subject(s) - intrusion , government (linguistics) , scientific enterprise , lyme disease , scientific evidence , disease , lyme , medicine , population , intensive care medicine , clinical practice , engineering ethics , political science , family medicine , epistemology , immunology , law , pathology , engineering , environmental health , philosophy , borrelia burgdorferi , linguistics , geochemistry , geology , science education , antibody
There is no better example of a relentless attack on evidence‐based biomedical research and the integrity of outstanding scientists than that associated with the treatment of a poorly defined condition called “chronic Lyme disease.” Here, a scientifically naive general population, the lay press, and legislators, who in most instances are unable to evaluate and judge scientific evidence properly, have been misled by patient advocate groups to believe that extended antibiotic therapy is the best and only solution to this condition. This has resulted in the unprecedented intrusion of government and the legal systems into the practice of medicine and scientific research. Because there is no clinical evidence that this condition is due to a persistent infection, advocating extended antibiotic therapy is not justified and has been shown to be harmful and of no benefit.—Baker, P. J. Chronic Lyme disease: in defense of the scientific enterprise. FASEB J . 24, 4175–4177 (2010). www.fasebj.org