Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation
The Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation, a non-profit organization, annually hosts the Morgellons Disease Conference. Our mission with the annual conference is to fundraise for scientific research and medical education, raise public awareness, and provide support for those who suffer with this unexplained illness.
Annual Medical-Scientific Conference on Morgellons Disease
We will announce our 2021 conference as soon as we are able to get it scheduled.
Each spring we have an Annual Medical-Scientific Conference on Morgellons Disease, Searching for the Uncommon Thread, in Austin, TX. Details about the 2-day conference will be on our website and Facebook page. Although this is a medical conference, everyone is invited and encouraged to attend.
Anyone with the disease or supporting someone with it certainly will gain tremendous insight and better understanding by attending the conference. We hope you will consider joining us in Austin and look forward to meeting you.
May 2-3, 2020
The Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation has made the difficult decision to cancel the 13th annual conference that was scheduled on May 2nd and 3rd in Austin, TX. We have been in consultation with the hotel and they have assured us that this is the right action to take at this time in light of the coronavirus outbreak.
April 6-7, 2019
My Morgellons Journey and the Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation
Morgellons Disease: 16 Years on the Front Lines
Biography
Dr. Ginger Savely is a Family Nurse Practitioner with a Doctorate Degree in Nursing Practice from Case Western Reserve University where she was honored with the Dean’s Legacy Award for her research on Morgellons disease. She is considered to be one of the top experts in the United States on the diagnosis and treatment of tick-borne diseases and is the nation’s leading clinical expert on Morgellons disease.
Dr. Savely was one of the first people in the world to advocate for Morgellons disease and to assert that the disease was not psychiatric but infectious in nature. Her book, “Morgellons: The Legitimization of a Disease”, was released in November 2016 and is available on Amazon and also at this conference.
Detection of tick-borne infection in Morgellons disease patients by serological and molecular techniques
Abstract
Topic: Morgellons Disease – Is it a Chronic form of Borrelia and/or Bartonella Infection?
Morgellons disease has been associated with Borrelia infections. We performed a study on 29 well characterized patients with Morgellons disease. All the patient blood samples were tested for Borrelia burgdorferi group, Relapsing Fever Borrelia group, Babesia, Ehrlichia and Bartonella by immunological and molecular methods. We were able to detect antibodies or DNA of Borrelia burgdorferi group, Relapsing Fever Borrelia group and Bartonella in these patients. Surprisingly none of the patients were positive for Ehrlichia or Babesia in this group.
Biography
Dr. Jyotsna Shah is the Vice-President and Laboratory Director of IGeneX Laboratory, Palo Alto, CA. Dr. Shah has over 35 years of research experience in immunology, molecular biology and microbiology. She received her BSc and MSc in Biological Sciences from UK and her PhD in diagnostic immunology from Nairobi University. She then joined the International Laboratory for Research on Animal Diseases (ILRAD) as a post-doctoral scientist where she started the first DNA sequencing laboratory in E. Africa. On completion of her fellowship, she joined Harvard University, Department of Tropical Medicine as a research fellow and continued work on development of molecular tools for diagnosis of parasitic diseases.
Since then she has worked at several Biotechnology companies, mostly involved in development of novel molecular technologies for diagnosis of infectious diseases. Dr. Shah is a world expert on use of Fluorescent in Situ Hybridization (FISH) technique for direct detection of pathogens in clinical samples. For the last 18 years, she has been at IGeneX, where she introduced the first FISH test for Babesia and set up the PCR division for tick-borne diseases. Under her scientific guidance IGeneX has become one of the leading reference laboratory for diagnosis of tick-borne diseases in the world.
Morgellons Disease: Diagnostic Testing, Conventional and Alternative/Integrative Treatment Approaches in the BCA-Clinic in Augsburg, Germany
Biography
After finishing his academic education at two German Universities (Regensburg and Munich) and medical training, Dr. Carsten Nicolaus opened his own GP practice in Augsburg in the South of Germany. Only a few weeks after the opening of the practice, he was confronted with problems of tick-borne diseases, particularly Lyme disease.
During 17 years of his career as a GP, tick-borne diseases started to be of great and increasing importance to him and his patients. As a result of this, he decided to found the first German treatment centre which exclusively treats tick-borne diseases. The BCA-clinic was established on 1st October 2006 and specialises in diagnostics and treatment of tick-borne diseases and patient rehabilitation.
Dr. Nicolaus has been an active member of the German Borreliosis Society and ILADS for many years. Since 2012 he has been one of Board directors of ILADEF
Morgellons Demystified
Biography
Marianne Middelveen is a microbiologist from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, currently working in the field of Veterinary Microbiology. She received post-graduate degrees in Microbial and Biochemical Science and in Environmental Science from Georgia State University and University of Calgary, respectively. She has worked as a researcher in the fields of medical mycology and bacteriology at the Amazon Center for Research and Control of Tropical Diseases, and at the Institute of Tropical Medicine, Central University, both in Venezuela; at Georgia State University and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia; and at the University of Calgary. She became interested in Lyme disease after discovering she had the disease in 2011. As a volunteer, she has been involved in research related to Lyme disease and Morgellons disease. To date she has been a contributing author on more than a dozen peer-reviewed papers concerning Morgellons disease, many of which present ground-breaking research.
Morgellons Disease: Reality, Unreality and the Next Steps
Biography
Randy S. Wymore was born in Fresno, CA, where he spent the first half of his life. With transfer of college credits from Fresno Community College and Cal-State Fresno, he completed his B.S. degree in Animal Physiology at the University of California, Davis. His entire time at UC Davis was spent as a Regents Scholar. Randy Wymore then entered the Ph.D. program at UC Irvine in the laboratory of K. George Chandy, MD, Ph.D. and devoted his work to the study of potassium channels in the heart and nervous system. He completed his Ph.D. in physiology and biophysics in 1995.
Dr. Wymore did his post-doctoral work on the characterization of potassium and pacemaker channels in the heart and nervous system in the lab of Ira Cohen, MD, Ph.D. at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. After living in California and New York he moved to Oklahoma where he accepted a position at the University of Tulsa. After receiving tenure at the University of Tulsa he moved across the Arkansas River to the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences where his laboratory currently resides. Dr. Wymore is an Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Physiology. He is a course coordinator of a 3 semester course titled Service Learning and Community Engagement, as well as co-coordinator of the Integrated Systems Review. Dr. Wymore teaches multiple pharmacology topics to first and second year medical and graduate students.
As the Associate Dean for Curriculum, Dr. Wymore is responsible for implementation of the 4 year medical curriculum and ensuring the curriculum meets accreditation requirements at the Tulsa campus and the Cherokee Nation campus which will open in August of 2020. Dr. Wymore is responsible for oversight of the Dept. of Medical Education, Dept. of Pathology, Office of Educational Design and the Office of Student Success.
Dr. Wymore has been a coauthor on seventeen articles published in peer-reviewed scientific journals and has been a contributing author on one book and one review article. His most recent journal articles have been on the role of potassium channels in cancer. He now spends all of his research time working on Morgellons Disease and is the Director of the OSU-CHS Center for the Investigation of Morgellons Disease.
Dr. Wymore is a Costin Scholar and serves on the Standard Setting Committee for COMLEX Level I board exam of the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME).
Morgellons Disease: A Year in Review
Biography
Melissa is a board certified Family Nurse Practitioner with experience in Urgent Care Medicine. She currently works with Raphael B. Stricker, MD at Union Square Medical Associates in San Francisco, CA where she specializes in the treatment of tickborne disease and Morgellons Disease. Melissa received a B.S. in Medical and Public Health Microbiology, and Minor in Biotechnology from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and B.S. in Nursing from Samuel Merritt University, graduating Summa Cum Laude. She worked as a registered nurse in dermatology prior to receiving her M.S. in Nursing as a Family Nurse Practitioner from Georgetown University. Melissa is member of the California Association for Nurse Practitioners (CANP), American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP), American Nurses Association (ANA), and the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS. Melissa has co-authored several peer reviewed studies on Morgellons.
Unraveling Complex Clinical Cases – Treatment Approach to Polymicrobial Infections in Patients with Morgellons Disease and Evidence of Vector Diversity
Biography
Dr. Courtney Day is a licensed Naturopathic Doctor treating Morgellons Disease patients in her clinical practice in Portland, Oregon. Prior to deciding on her path to become a holistic physician, Dr. Day earned her bachelors of science degree in Microbiology from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo where she studied medical microbiology and biotechnology. Shortly after finishing her undergraduate degree, she started to develop symptoms of Morgellons Disease but was dismissed by her dermatologist when she reported painful, slow healing, recurrent skin lesions and presented photographs of multicolored filaments protruding from within the lesions and surrounding skin.
Despite having just graduated with a microbiology degree, she could not find explanations for what she was observing in any medical text or recent microbiology literature. Eventually she uncovered the term “Morgellons Disease”, coined by microbiologist Mary Leitao in 2002, who had described the same phenomenon in her son. About a decade later, research presented at the Charles E. Holman Foundation conference in 2012 associated the disease with spirochetal infections, despite the conclusions of the CDC study published the same year stating that the disease was not associated with any infectious etiology. At that point in her healing journey, Dr. Day had already improved her health substantially with nutrition, detoxification support, herbal medicine, acupuncture and antimicrobial therapies, which she continued throughout her education at the Natural University of Natural Medicine in Portland, Oregon. She began her clinical practice in 2015, focusing on integrative and restorative therapies, especially in regards to Morgellons Disease and persistent Lyme Disease Complex, using her medical training, personal experience and evidence based research to help guide her practice.
Morgellons Disease: Where We Are and Where We’re Trying to Go
Biography
Dr. Greg Smith practiced General Pediatrics for 28 years before becoming disabled by the systemic and neurological symptoms of Morgellons Disease. He has been active in the Morgellons “movement” advocating for research, recognition of Morgellons Disease as a unique pathology and, eventually, a treatment and cure of this affliction. He worked with the Morgellons Research Foundation for 2 years, and then, was one of the founders of The Charles E. Holman Foundation. Dr. Smith continues to serve with The CEHMDF as the Associate Director and as a member of the Medical Advisory Panel.
Abstract
When the CEHMDF was formed, the cause and treatment of Morgellons was a mystery. Through the efforts of dedicated research students and medical practitioners, we now know Morgelllons is associated with Lyme disease. We also know both the skin lesions and the systemic symptoms improve or go away with appropriate treatment for Lyme infection. Our greatest challenge now will be changing the attitudes of the medical establishment about this disorder. Education both of the public and medical practitioners will hopefully end in better medical care for patients with Morgellons.
Though all of these videos are valuable resources and many feature members of the CEHMDF community, they may or may not reflect the views of the CEHMDF.
April 14-15, 2018
Morgellons Disease: Diagnostic Testing, Conventional and Alternative/Integrative Treatment Approaches in the BCA-Clinic in Augsburg, Germany
Biography
After finishing his academic education at two German Universities (Regensburg and Munich) and medical training, Dr. Carsten Nicolaus opened his own GP practice in Augsburg in the South of Germany. Only a few weeks after the opening of the practice, he was confronted with problems of tick-borne diseases, particularly Lyme disease.
During 17 years of his career as a GP, tick-borne diseases started to be of great and increasing importance to him and his patients. As a result of this, he decided to found the first German treatment centre which exclusively treats tick-borne diseases. The BCA-clinic was established on 1st October 2006 and specialises in diagnostics and treatment of tick-borne diseases and patient rehabilitation.
Dr. Nicolaus has been an active member of the German Borreliosis Society and ILADS for many years. Since 2012 he has been one of Board directors of ILADEF
Diagnosing Morgellons Disease
Biography
Dr. Ginger Savely is a Family Nurse Practitioner with a Doctorate Degree in Nursing Practice from Case Western Reserve University where she was honored with the Dean’s Legacy Award for her research on Morgellons disease. She is considered to be one of the top experts in the United States on the diagnosis and treatment of tick-borne diseases and is the nation’s leading clinical expert on Morgellons disease.
Dr. Savely was one of the first people in the world to advocate for Morgellons disease and to assert that the disease was not psychiatric but infectious in nature. Her book, “Morgellons: The Legitimization of a Disease”, was released in November 2016 and is available on Amazon and also at this conference.
Environmental Toxins & Morgellons Disease
Biography
Completing her training in Family Medicine at Georgetown University in February of 2011, Dr. Cornish graduated from Brown University undergraduate Phi Beta Kappa and Brown University medical school. She joined Internal Medicine of Northern Virginia with a passion for managing the challenges facing patients dealing with complex medical conditions.
As a Howard Hughes Medical Fellow, Dr. Cornish conducted translational research at the National Human Genome Research Institute of NIH. She was an apprentice in the laboratory of Francis Collins, M.D Ph.D. the current director of NIH. Under his leadership, she analyzed genetic associations of chronic illnesses.
The Truth About Fake News
Abstract
This presentation will debunk the myths from IDSA and CDC surrounding Lyme disease and Morgellons. What is real, what is nonsense, what is contrived. The Lyme Wars continue. Morgellons is just heating up!
Biography
After graduating from Harvard University in 1968 Dr. Wilson obtained a Masters in Immunology and Bacteriology from the U. Utah. After medical school at the U. of Utah, he finished his residency in OBGYN and moved his family to Denton Tx where he practiced OB for 31 years delivering over 6000 babies. In 2004 he finally obtained a diagnosis of Lyme disease for his wife and congenital Lyme for his 3 children. Congenital Lyme was passed to two grandchildren. They were treated by Dr. Burrascano and did achieve remission. Because of this, he became very interested in Lyme, has attended yearly ILADS conferences, two preceptorships with Lyme experts, and began to diagnose and treat Lyme and associated infections since, exclusively since 2011. He has recently been made the President of the ILADS Educational foundation, arranging educational science meetings and supporting physicians’ training in Lyme. He also became interested in Morgellons as several of his patients presented with this condition complicating their Lyme. He is honored to be asked to speak at this conference and support efforts to understand Morgellons.
Topic 1: Morgellons: Is it delusional?
Abstract
Topic 1: Morgellons: Is it delusional?
Morgellons disease (MD) is a skin condition characterized by multicolored filaments that lie under, are embedded in, or project from skin. Some individuals with MD may have crawling or stinging sensations and may mistakenly believe they have an insect or parasite infestation. As a result, many mainstream medical professionals consider MD to be a purely delusional disorder. The strength of evidence supporting a delusional etiology for MD will be reviewed in this talk.
Biography
Marianne Middelveen is a microbiologist and a medical mycologist in Calgary, Alberta, Canada currently working in the field of Veterinary Microbiology and specializing in bovine mastitis. She received post-graduate degrees in Microbial and Biochemical Science and in Environmental Science from Georgia State University and University of Calgary, respectively. She has been involved in research projects at the Centro Amazonico para Investigacion y Control de Enfermedades Tropicales, Puerto Ayacucho, Territorio Federal Amazonas (Edo. Amazonas), Venezuela; Instituto de Medicina Tropical, Universidad Central de Caracas, Caracas, Venezuela; Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia; Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Gerogia; University of Calgary, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Calgary, Alberta. She became interested in Lyme disease after discovering she had the disease in 2011. As a volunteer, she has been involved in research related to Lyme disease on behalf of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation.
Ms. Middelveen’s interest in Morgellons began when she came across the website of Ginger Savely, DNP. Ground-breaking articles on Morgellons co-authored by Middelveen and Raphael Stricker, MD were published in Nov., 2011 and May, 2012. Research is continuing from this team and will be submitted to peer- reviewed medical journals for publication when completed.
Topic 2: Morgellons Disease: Is it infection?
Abstract
Topic 2: Morgellons Disease: Is it infection?
Morgellons disease (MD) is a skin condition characterized by the presence of microscopic fibers that originate within the skin. MD is a controversial topic. Some medical professionals believe it is a purely delusional disorder while others maintain that it has an infectious etiology. Experimental investigations have revealed that MD fibers are keratin and collagen and suggest that the skin condition results from a physiological response to spirochetal infection. Showing a causal relationship between disease and an infectious agent is challenging. The evidence supporting a causal relationship between MD and infection will be evaluated.
Biography
Marianne Middelveen is a microbiologist and a medical mycologist in Calgary, Alberta, Canada currently working in the field of Veterinary Microbiology and specializing in bovine mastitis. She received post-graduate degrees in Microbial and Biochemical Science and in Environmental Science from Georgia State University and University of Calgary, respectively. She has been involved in research projects at the Centro Amazonico para Investigacion y Control de Enfermedades Tropicales, Puerto Ayacucho, Territorio Federal Amazonas (Edo. Amazonas), Venezuela; Instituto de Medicina Tropical, Universidad Central de Caracas, Caracas, Venezuela; Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia; Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Gerogia; University of Calgary, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Calgary, Alberta. She became interested in Lyme disease after discovering she had the disease in 2011. As a volunteer, she has been involved in research related to Lyme disease on behalf of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation.
Ms. Middelveen’s interest in Morgellons began when she came across the website of Ginger Savely, DNP. Ground-breaking articles on Morgellons co-authored by Middelveen and Raphael Stricker, MD were published in Nov., 2011 and May, 2012. Research is continuing from this team and will be submitted to peer- reviewed medical journals for publication when completed.
Multiple Bacterial Species Co-Localized Exclusively to Active Lesions
Biography
Randy S. Wymore was born in Fresno, CA, where he spent the first half of his life. With transfer of college credits from Fresno Community College and Cal-State Fresno, he completed his B.S. degree in Animal Physiology at the University of California, Davis. His entire time at UC Davis was spent as a Regents Scholar. Randy Wymore then entered the Ph.D. program at UC Irvine in the laboratory of K. George Chandy, MD, Ph.D. and devoted his work to the study of potassium channels in the heart and nervous system. He completed his Ph.D. in physiology and biophysics in 1995.
Dr. Wymore did his post-doctoral work on the characterization of potassium and pacemaker channels in the heart and nervous system in the lab of Ira Cohen, MD, Ph.D. at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. After living in California and New York he moved to Oklahoma where he accepted a position at the University of Tulsa. After receiving tenure at the University of Tulsa he moved across the Arkansas River to the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences where his laboratory currently resides. Dr. Wymore is an Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Physiology. He is a course coordinator of a 3 semester course titled Service Learning and Community Engagement, as well as co-coordinator of the Integrated Systems Review. Dr. Wymore teaches multiple pharmacology topics to first and second year medical and graduate students.
As the Associate Dean for Curriculum, Dr. Wymore is responsible for implementation of the 4 year medical curriculum and ensuring the curriculum meets accreditation requirements at the Tulsa campus and the Cherokee Nation campus which will open in August of 2020. Dr. Wymore is responsible for oversight of the Dept. of Medical Education, Dept. of Pathology, Office of Educational Design and the Office of Student Success.
Dr. Wymore has been a coauthor on seventeen articles published in peer-reviewed scientific journals and has been a contributing author on one book and one review article. His most recent journal articles have been on the role of potassium channels in cancer. He now spends all of his research time working on Morgellons Disease and is the Director of the OSU-CHS Center for the Investigation of Morgellons Disease.
Dr. Wymore is a Costin Scholar and serves on the Standard Setting Committee for COMLEX Level I board exam of the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME).
Evidence of Bacterial Co-Infections in Morgellons and Lyme Patients
Biography
Julie Lewis is a PhD student at the Université de Moncton and Mount Allison University in New Brunswick, Canada. Her primary research interest involves infectious diseases at the molecular and cellular level.
To investigate the infectious hypothesis as the cause of Morgellons disease, her current work seeks to characterize pathogen-host interactions of Morgellons samples derived from human and domesticated animal patients. For her Masters, Julie assessed the risk of Lyme disease by testing ticks from Atlantic Canada for the widespread Borrelia species, Borrelia burgdorferi, a member of the Borrelia group responsible for Lyme disease.
Through this work, she identified an evolving threat for the emerging disease – infected ticks expanding away from known endemic areas. Julie also detected Borrelia bissettii, another Borrelia species of the Lyme group that was recently introduced in Canada, in ticks found feeding on humans and dogs; thereby reporting, for the first time, an existing health risk for Lyme disease from this understudied Borrelia species in New Brunswick.
Suicide and Morgellons Diseases
Abstract
Suicide and Morgellons Diseases
Although morbidity and disability with Morgellons disease have been described by many, mortality has never been methodically studied. Suicides of Morgellons patients have occurred and both suicide and accidental overdoses may cause considerable mortality. Suicidal risk is recognized with Lyme disease, which is frequently seen in association with Morgellons disease. Suicide is the result of an interaction of multiple known and unknown contributors, acute triggers and failed deterrents. The multiple contributors that collectively can increase suicidal risk seen in Morgellons patients include an immune provoked pathophysiology; visibly apparent and potentially stigmatizing symptoms; fear the illness can be contagious; guilt and fears of being a burden and frequently a lack of understanding and negative views of the condition on the part of the patient, family, friends, physicians and others in the healthcare system.
Multiple studies link many infections, proinflammatory cytokines, tryptophan metabolism, quinolinic acid and glutamate mediated physiology with increased risk of suicide. In addition, Morgellons patients may acquire a number of neuropsychiatric symptoms that collective can increase suicidal risk. These symptoms can include cognitive impairments, fatigue, sleep disorders, depression, anhedonia, low frustration tolerance, generalized anxiety, social anxiety, hypervigilance, panic attacks, depersonalization, paranoia, intrusive symptoms, mood swings, explosive anger, chronic pain, formication and substance abuse.
Delays in diagnosis and treatment lead to disease progression and further increase the risk of morbidity and suicidal. In contrast, earlier diagnosis, combined treatment with antibiotics and psychotropics, other treatments to reduce symptoms, a better understanding of the disease process, a better understanding of the pathophysiology of suicidality in Morgellons disease, screening for suicidal risk, reduction of stigma and better research in this area can decrease the risk of morbidity and suicide.
Suicide is a permanent response to a temporary problem. Many survive suicidality to go on and lead productive and gratifying lives. Suffering from this disease can be reduced. The joy of life can be restored. Needless death can be prevented. Patients should not give up hope. There are answers, solutions, and assistance. There is life after Morgellons.
Biography
Dr. Robert C. Bransfield is a graduate of Rutgers College and the George Washington University School of Medicine. He completed his psychiatric residency training at Sheppard and Enoch Pratt Hospital. He is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in Psychiatry, is certified in Clinical Psychopharmacology by the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology and is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.
Dr. Bransfield has held teaching appointments at Hahnemann Medical College and Eastern Virginia Medical School. He has taught in many settings to physicians, mental health professionals and the public. He has performed research, and has a particular interest in psychopharmacology, a unified theory of mental health and illness, the link between microbes and mental illness, Lyme and other tick-borne disease, violence, and the link between microbes and violence.
Dr Bransfield has been active in political advocacy on a national, state and local level. He has appeared on network and regional television, radio and various publications. He has authored and co-authored a number of publications in peer-reviewed literature, other medical publications and books. He has held a number of administrative positions for various organizations involved with a number of health, mental health and community related activities.
Dr. Bransfield maintains a private practice of psychiatry in Red Bank, NJ. Additionally, he is the Associate Director of Psychiatry and Chairman of Psychiatric Quality Assurance at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, NJ. As Immediate Past President of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) and Immediate President of the New Jersey Psychiatric Association, Dr. Bransfield is a strong advocate for Mental Health, Lyme Disease and Morgellons Disease.
Healing from Morgellons Disease
Biography
Dr. Courtney Day is a licensed Naturopathic Doctor treating Morgellons Disease patients in her clinical practice in Portland, Oregon. Prior to deciding on her path to become a holistic physician, Dr. Day earned her bachelors of science degree in Microbiology from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo where she studied medical microbiology and biotechnology. Shortly after finishing her undergraduate degree, she started to develop symptoms of Morgellons Disease but was dismissed by her dermatologist when she reported painful, slow healing, recurrent skin lesions and presented photographs of multicolored filaments protruding from within the lesions and surrounding skin.
Despite having just graduated with a microbiology degree, she could not find explanations for what she was observing in any medical text or recent microbiology literature. Eventually she uncovered the term “Morgellons Disease”, coined by microbiologist Mary Leitao in 2002, who had described the same phenomenon in her son. About a decade later, research presented at the Charles E. Holman Foundation conference in 2012 associated the disease with spirochetal infections, despite the conclusions of the CDC study published the same year stating that the disease was not associated with any infectious etiology. At that point in her healing journey, Dr. Day had already improved her health substantially with nutrition, detoxification support, herbal medicine, acupuncture and antimicrobial therapies, which she continued throughout her education at the Natural University of Natural Medicine in Portland, Oregon. She began her clinical practice in 2015, focusing on integrative and restorative therapies, especially in regards to Morgellons Disease and persistent Lyme Disease Complex, using her medical training, personal experience and evidence based research to help guide her practice.
Morgellons Fibers in an 8 year old Golden Retriever
Abstract
I will present 6 to 8 images of the canine patient in which I discovered Morgellons fibers in a chronic crusty lesion at the toe pad-skin junction. There will be a brief intro where I state how my attention was brought to the skin lesion and the serendipitous (and fortuitous) events that made me think of Morgellon fibers. Planned length of presentation will be 15 minutes. I will state that I will be available any time at the conference to discuss any insights to be shared with the attendees.
Biography
Dr. Dunn graduated from the University of Illinois, College of Veterinary Medicine, in 1970. During his career as a small animal practitioner he owned and operated 3 animal hospitals and a retail pet food and supply store.
He is licensed to practice in Wisconsin and Florida and for the past 22 years has worked as an independent contractor in more than 25 different animal health care facilities. He created one of the first Internet veterinary medical websites called ThePetCenter.com which was purchased by PetFoodDirect.com. He served as Director of Veterinary Services managing several veterinarians answering pet owners’ online pet care questions and advised the directors on small animal health care issues.
For 4 years he wrote a monthly dog health care column in Dog World Magazine and has written numerous articles for online and print publications. He continues practicing small animal medicine and surgery in Florida and Wisconsin.
Patient Perspectives: Never Say Whoa in a Mudhole
Abstract
This covers many aspects of Morgellons from the patient point of view. Will talk in terms patients can understand and help them to navigate their recovery. Includes many of her own pictures of unusual fibers, “goop, guck and stuff” in black, yellow, orange, white, brown, etc. Address how to know if your treatment is working. Help to ease the panic that patients often experience. Explains some common tests and how to understand them.
Biography
Denise was diagnosed with Morgellons in September of 2011. Like so many others with Morgellons, she had seen an extensive number of doctors prior to her Morgellons diagnosis looking for medical answers. She has a sister who is a medical doctor who does not understand Lyme and refuses to read the peer reviewed scientific studies. Unable to continue her career due to her worsening symptoms, she knows what many others with Morgellons have to overcome. She volunteers with the Charles E Holman Foundation, answering daily email requests for information, and with the Oregon Lyme Disease Network.
Though all of these videos are valuable resources and many feature members of the CEHMDF community, they may or may not reflect the views of the CEHMDF.
April 29-30, 2017
A Critique of the CDC Morgellons Study
Biography
Marianne Middelveen is a microbiologist and a medical mycologist in Calgary, Alberta, Canada currently working in the field of Veterinary Microbiology and specializing in bovine mastitis. She received post-graduate degrees in Microbial and Biochemical Science and in Environmental Science from Georgia State University and University of Calgary, respectively. She has been involved in research projects at the Centro Amazonico para Investigacion y Control de Enfermedades Tropicales, Puerto Ayacucho, Territorio Federal Amazonas (Edo. Amazonas), Venezuela; Instituto de Medicina Tropical, Universidad Central de Caracas, Caracas, Venezuela; Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia; Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Gerogia; University of Calgary, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Calgary, Alberta. She became interested in Lyme disease after discovering she had the disease in 2011. As a volunteer, she has been involved in research related to Lyme disease on behalf of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation.
Ms. Middelveen’s interest in Morgellons began when she came across the website of Ginger Savely, DNP. Ground-breaking articles on Morgellons co-authored by Middelveen and Raphael Stricker, MD were published in Nov., 2011 and May, 2012. Research is continuing from this team and will be submitted to peer- reviewed medical journals for publication when completed.
Canine Filamentous Dermatitis Associated with Borrelia Infection
Abstract
Canine Filamentous Dermatitis Associated with Borrelia Infection
Background: Although canine clinical manifestations of Lyme disease vary widely, cutaneous manifestations are not well documented in dogs. In contrast, a variety of cutaneous manifestations are reported in human Lyme disease caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi. A recently recognized dermopathy associated with tickborne illness known as Morgellons disease is characterized by brightly-colored filamentous inclusions and projections detected in ulcerative lesions and under unbroken skin. Recent studies have demonstrated that the dermal filaments are collagen and keratin biofibers produced by epithelial cells in response to spirochetal infection. We now describe a similar filamentous dermatitis in canine Lyme disease. Methods and Results: Nine dogs were found to have cutaneous ulcerative lesions containing embedded or projecting dermal filaments. Spirochetes characterized as Borrelia spp. were detected in skin tissue by culture, histology, immunohistochemistry, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and gene sequencing performed at five independent laboratories. Borrelia DNA was detected either directly from skin specimens or from cultures inoculated with skin specimens taken from the nine canine study subjects. Amplicon sequences from two canine samples matched gene sequences for Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto. PCR amplification failed to detect spirochetes in dermatological specimens from four healthy asymptomatic dogs. Conclusions: Our study provides evidence that a filamentous dermatitis analogous to Morgellons disease may be a manifestation of Lyme disease in domestic dogs.
Biography
Dr. Stricker is internationally recognized as a leader in tickborne disease diagnosis, treatment, and research. He is past President and a current Board Member of ILADS and he serves on the Medical Advisory Board for the Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation. He is also a member of the American Society of Hematology (ASH), the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), the Clinical Immunology Society (CIS), the American Federation for Medical Research (AFMR) and the American Society for Reproductive Immunology (ASRI). He was recently invited to become an Overseas Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine.
Dr. Stricker is a recipient of the American Medical Association Award for Physician Excellence, and he has authored over 200 medical journal articles and abstracts. Areas of special interest include immunologic infertility, immunodeficiency, coagulation disorders and tickborne diseases.
Multiple Bacterial Species Present in Active Morgellons Lesions
Biography
Randy S. Wymore was born in Fresno, CA, where he spent the first half of his life. With transfer of college credits from Fresno Community College and Cal-State Fresno, he completed his B.S. degree in Animal Physiology at the University of California, Davis. His entire time at UC Davis was spent as a Regents Scholar. Randy Wymore then entered the Ph.D. program at UC Irvine in the laboratory of K. George Chandy, MD, Ph.D. and devoted his work to the study of potassium channels in the heart and nervous system. He completed his Ph.D. in physiology and biophysics in 1995.
Dr. Wymore did his post-doctoral work on the characterization of potassium and pacemaker channels in the heart and nervous system in the lab of Ira Cohen, MD, Ph.D. at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. After living in California and New York he moved to Oklahoma where he accepted a position at the University of Tulsa. After receiving tenure at the University of Tulsa he moved across the Arkansas River to the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences where his laboratory currently resides. Dr. Wymore is an Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Physiology. He is a course coordinator of a 3 semester course titled Service Learning and Community Engagement, as well as co-coordinator of the Integrated Systems Review. Dr. Wymore teaches multiple pharmacology topics to first and second year medical and graduate students.
As the Associate Dean for Curriculum, Dr. Wymore is responsible for implementation of the 4 year medical curriculum and ensuring the curriculum meets accreditation requirements at the Tulsa campus and the Cherokee Nation campus which will open in August of 2020. Dr. Wymore is responsible for oversight of the Dept. of Medical Education, Dept. of Pathology, Office of Educational Design and the Office of Student Success.
Dr. Wymore has been a coauthor on seventeen articles published in peer-reviewed scientific journals and has been a contributing author on one book and one review article. His most recent journal articles have been on the role of potassium channels in cancer. He now spends all of his research time working on Morgellons Disease and is the Director of the OSU-CHS Center for the Investigation of Morgellons Disease.
Dr. Wymore is a Costin Scholar and serves on the Standard Setting Committee for COMLEX Level I board exam of the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME).
How to Have a Better Experience at Your Doctor Visit
Abstract
Topic: How to Have a Better Experience at Your Doctor Visit
People with chronic diseases desperately need informed, caring physicians. Too often, patients find their physician lacking. The lack of trust is associated with poor use of medications (objectively observed with electronic monitoring of medication use) and bad treatment outcomes, bad for patients and bad for the physician. There are ways for patients and physicians to partner better. Based on data that patients provided to a doctor rating website, physicians need to make clear how much they care about their patients. Patients should recognize that physicians do care (even if it doesn’t seem that way). The Golden Rule is a very good rule; we should treat people the way we want to be treated. Challenging or denigrating people’s knowledge is likely to create conflict and bad feelings, irrespective of who is doing it. Good communication is essential. Being willing to give constructive feedback and being open to feedback is important for both parties in a physician-patient partnership. Framing feedback in a positive way strengthens relationships and avoids needlessly destructive conflict. Sticking with one doctor and building a strong, trusting relationship may be a more effective way to get satisfying care and optimal treatment results.
Biography
Dr. Steven R. Feldman is 58 years old. He received his MD and PhD degrees from Duke University in Durham, NC, in 1985, following which he completed his dermatology residency at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his dermatopathology residency at the Medical University of South Carolina, in Charleston. He is a professor of Dermatology, Pathology, and Public Health Sciences and the Director of the Psoriasis Treatment Center at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, NC.
Dr. Feldman leads the Center for Dermatology Research, a health services research center whose mission is to improve the care of patients with skin disease. Dr. Feldman’s chief clinical interest is psoriasis, a chronic, physically & psychosocially disabling condition. His passion is to help guide how patients with psoriasis are treated. He has served on the Medical Board of the National Psoriasis Foundation and directed psoriasis education programs for the American Academy of Dermatology. Feldman has also done ground breaking work on addiction to tanning beds and on patients’ adherence to their medication treatment regimens.
Feldman’s work in psoriasis led him to an interest in patient satisfaction. Feldman created the www.DrScore.com doctor rating/patient satisfaction website. He analyzes data from that website to better inform doctors on how to enhance their care of their patients.
Dr. Feldman’s work has been published in over 800 articles in peer-reviewed journals, including top-flight dermatology and managed care journals. Feldman serves as the editor of the Journal of Dermatology and Dermatological Surgery (the journal of the Saudi Society of Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery), as an editor of the Journal of Dermatological Treatment, and as chief medical editor of The Dermatologist.
Objective Findings in Morgellons Disease
Biography
Dr. Ginger Savely is a Family Nurse Practitioner with a Doctorate Degree in Nursing Practice from Case Western Reserve University where she was honored with the Dean’s Legacy Award for her research on Morgellons disease. She is considered to be one of the top experts in the United States on the diagnosis and treatment of tick-borne diseases and is the nation’s leading clinical expert on Morgellons disease.
Dr. Savely was one of the first people in the world to advocate for Morgellons disease and to assert that the disease was not psychiatric but infectious in nature. Her book, “Morgellons: The Legitimization of a Disease”, was released in November 2016 and is available on Amazon and also at this conference.
Morgellons Disease: Conventional. Alternative and Integrative Approaches in the BCA-Clinic in Augsburg, Germany
Biography
After finishing his academic education at two German Universities (Regensburg and Munich) and medical training, Dr. Carsten Nicolaus opened his own GP practice in Augsburg in the South of Germany. Only a few weeks after the opening of the practice, he was confronted with problems of tick-borne diseases, particularly Lyme disease.
During 17 years of his career as a GP, tick-borne diseases started to be of great and increasing importance to him and his patients. As a result of this, he decided to found the first German treatment centre which exclusively treats tick-borne diseases. The BCA-clinic was established on 1st October 2006 and specialises in diagnostics and treatment of tick-borne diseases and patient rehabilitation.
Dr. Nicolaus has been an active member of the German Borreliosis Society and ILADS for many years. Since 2012 he has been one of Board directors of ILADEF
Morgellons Disease Testing and Diagnosis
Abstract
Morgellons Disease (MD) is a persistent multisystem illness characterized by epithelial overproduction of keratin and collagen. Multiple peer reviewed journal articles demonstrate the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi in individuals diagnosed with MD. Detection of Borrelia sp. and tickborne coinfections faces many challenges due to varying specificity and sensitivity of available diagnostic tests. However, both direct and indirect methods can be used in combination with a comprehensive medical examination to make the diagnosis of MD. This presentation will discuss methods of Borrelia sp. and associated tickborne disease detection in MD, and provide relevant information for patients and clinicians facing difficulties with diagnosing the infectious etiologies associated with MD.
Biography
Melissa is a board certified Family Nurse Practitioner with experience in Urgent Care Medicine. She currently works with Raphael B. Stricker, MD at Union Square Medical Associates in San Francisco, CA where she specializes in the treatment of tickborne disease and Morgellons Disease.
Melissa received a B.S. in Medical and Public Health Microbiology, and Minor in Biotechnology from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and B.S. in Nursing from Samuel Merritt University, graduating Summa Cum Laude. She worked as a registered nurse in dermatology prior to receiving her M.S. in Nursing as a Family Nurse Practitioner from Georgetown University. Melissa is member of the California Association for Nurse Practitioners (CANP), American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP), American Nurses Association (ANA), and the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS). Melissa serves on the Medical Advisory Board for the Charles E. Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation.
Applying Functional Medicine in the Treatment of Morgellons Disease
Biography
Completing her training in Family Medicine at Georgetown University in February of 2011, Dr. Cornish graduated from Brown University undergraduate Phi Beta Kappa and Brown University medical school. She joined Internal Medicine of Northern Virginia with a passion for managing the challenges facing patients dealing with complex medical conditions.
As a Howard Hughes Medical Fellow, Dr. Cornish conducted translational research at the National Human Genome Research Institute of NIH. She was an apprentice in the laboratory of Francis Collins, M.D Ph.D. the current director of NIH. Under his leadership, she analyzed genetic associations of chronic illnesses.
Morgellons and Low Dose Antigen Treatment
Abstract
One case study of a Morgellon’s patient: A patient is administered Low-Dose Antigen treatment (LDA). It is used to treat environmental, food and chemical allergies as a possible treatment course. Low Dose Antigen treatment may be useful as an adjunctive therapy in combination with antimicrobial agents and other therapies.
Biography
Norihito Onishi, D.O. is a graduate of Western University of Health Science in Pomona, California.. Dr Onishi was originally trained as a Family Physician and worked in rural West Virginia for 6 years. Since then he has opened his own office in Southwest Pennsylvania focusing on the care of patients with chronic diseases and complicated medical presentations. He also has Integrative Medicine training.
A member of ILADS, Dr. Onishi was originally not supportive of those with reported Morgellons Disease. However he learned about Morgellons through multiple research presentations at ILADS meetings, literature from the Charles E Holman Morgellons Disease Foundation’s exhibit booth at the ILADS conference in 2015 and 2016 and from reading peer reviewed literature on the topic.
In his spare time, Dr. Onishi is a semi professional whitewater kayaker.
My Morgellons Experience
Biography
Dr. Amelia Withington is a psychiatrist on staff at the Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, Pennsylvania. She has Morgellons, and treats patients from across the country with Morgellons. Dr. Amelia Withington was born and raised in Concord, MA. While a student at Williams College she collaborated with members of the staff at the Federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to become the first author of the book Teenage Sexual Health. After graduating from medical school at the University of Texas-Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, she completed her residency at the Hahnemann University Hospital in Philadelphia. In 1995 she joined the staff of Friends Hospital, the nation’s oldest freestanding psychiatric hospital, where she served in a variety of inpatient and outpatient settings for the next decade. In 2006, Dr. Withington became a staff psychiatrist at the Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Chester, PA, where she has continued her outpatient practice in ambulatory clinic, community mental health, and special needs settings. In 2007 she collaborated on an international diagnostic manual for patients with developmental and intellectual disabilities and psychiatric symptoms, the DM-ID. She helped to establish a specialty clinic for patients and families with Fragile X Syndrome at the Elwyn Institute in Media, PA. Dr. Withington is currently working on a book about her experiences with Morgellons Disease.
The Neuropsychiatric Assessment when Suspecting Morgellons
Biography
Dr. Robert C. Bransfield is a graduate of Rutgers College and the George Washington University School of Medicine. He completed his psychiatric residency training at Sheppard and Enoch Pratt Hospital. He is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in Psychiatry, is certified in Clinical Psychopharmacology by the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology and is a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.
Dr. Bransfield has held teaching appointments at Hahnemann Medical College and Eastern Virginia Medical School. He has taught in many settings to physicians, mental health professionals and the public. He has performed research, and has a particular interest in psychopharmacology, a unified theory of mental health and illness, the link between microbes and mental illness, Lyme and other tick-borne disease, violence, and the link between microbes and violence.
Dr Bransfield has been active in political advocacy on a national, state and local level. He has appeared on network and regional television, radio and various publications. He has authored and co-authored a number of publications in peer-reviewed literature, other medical publications and books. He has held a number of administrative positions for various organizations involved with a number of health, mental health and community related activities.
Dr. Bransfield maintains a private practice of psychiatry in Red Bank, NJ. Additionally, he is the Associate Director of Psychiatry and Chairman of Psychiatric Quality Assurance at Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, NJ. As Immediate Past President of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) and Immediate President of the New Jersey Psychiatric Association, Dr. Bransfield is a strong advocate for Mental Health, Lyme Disease and Morgellons Disease.
Morgellons Disease: What’s Relevant, What Isn’t?
Biography
Marianne Middelveen is a microbiologist and a medical mycologist in Calgary, Alberta, Canada currently working in the field of Veterinary Microbiology and specializing in bovine mastitis. She received post-graduate degrees in Microbial and Biochemical Science and in Environmental Science from Georgia State University and University of Calgary, respectively. She has been involved in research projects at the Centro Amazonico para Investigacion y Control de Enfermedades Tropicales, Puerto Ayacucho, Territorio Federal Amazonas (Edo. Amazonas), Venezuela; Instituto de Medicina Tropical, Universidad Central de Caracas, Caracas, Venezuela; Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia; Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, Gerogia; University of Calgary, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Calgary, Alberta. She became interested in Lyme disease after discovering she had the disease in 2011. As a volunteer, she has been involved in research related to Lyme disease on behalf of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation.
Ms. Middelveen’s interest in Morgellons began when she came across the website of Ginger Savely, DNP. Ground-breaking articles on Morgellons co-authored by Middelveen and Raphael Stricker, MD were published in Nov., 2011 and May, 2012. Research is continuing from this team and will be submitted to peer- reviewed medical journals for publication when completed.
Though all of these videos are valuable resources and many feature members of the CEHMDF community, they may or may not reflect the views of the CEHMDF.