Wednesday 16 May 2012

MORE QUESTIONS IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS ABOUT LYME DISEASE

HOUSE OF LORDS 


Questions on Lyme Disease from the Countess of Mar details can be found here 


The Countess of Mar to ask Her Majesty’s Government what epidemiology data exists for the historic and current population densities of Ixodes ricinus ticks in England and Wales; whether it shows an increase in tick numbers; what proportion of ticks carry Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato; and what measures are in place for future monitoring. [DH] HL138 


The Countess of Mar to ask Her Majesty’s Government, with regard to the freedom of household pets to travel in Europe, what surveillance measures exist to detect the arrival of tick-borne encephalitis and other tick-borne diseases that are not currently endemic in the United Kingdom; and what measures exist to inform United Kingdom residents of the risks of those diseases when they travel to Europe and the United States and the need for vaccination for tick-borne encephalitis. [DH] HL139 


The Countess of Mar to ask Her Majesty’s Government what testing is carried out in addition to Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto and Borrelia afzelii for tick-borne diseases including Bartonellosis, Ehrlichiosis, Borrelia garinii, Babesiosis, Louping ill and Q-fever, that occur in the United Kingdom, and for other zoonoses such as tick-borne encephalitis, Boutonneuse fever, Tularemia and Rocky Mountain spotted fever to which United Kingdom residents can be exposed when travelling to Europe and the United States. [DH] HL140


The Countess of Mar to ask Her Majesty’s Government, with reference to the "new test" to be used by the Health Protection Agency (HPA) Lyme Unit at Porton Down for Lyme borreliosis, what data they hold for the sensitivity and specificity of the test kits for the local genospecies of Borrelia in England and Wales; what testing has been carried out by the HPA or other body to confirm the sensitivity and specificity of the test kits for the local genospecies in England and Wales; and, if testing was carried out, what were the sensitivity and specificity results. [DH] HL141 


The Countess of Mar to ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to enhance the current regulations defined by European Union Directive 98/79 to ensure proactive verification and certification of medical devices; and what data they possess for the performance characteristics and limitations of the ELISA and Western blot serology tests, including the test to be used at the Porton Down laboratory that is required from the manufacturers in accordance with Annex III of Directive 98/79. [DH] HL142 


The Countess of Mar to ask Her Majesty’s Government when the transfer of the Lyme Reference Laboratory to the Rare and Imported Pathogens Laboratory at Porton Down is expected to be complete and whether the Health Protection Agency will include Lyme on its list of Reference Services published on its website. [DH] HL143


It is good to see the Countess of Mar asking very pertinent questions of our Government and it is beholden of the Government to seek accurate and informative answers from the Department of Health not the fobbing off that has been the pattern so far, as evidenced by the 30ish letters to me from MP Anne Milton on the subject of Lyme Disease, although Anne says she has many concerns about this puzzling disease.

2 comments:

  1. I love this. The Countess of Mar is asking very basic questions which are not controversial and need to be answered - yet establishing the answers as fact will expose whatever problems there are with the diagnosis of Lyme disease and other tickborne infections in the UK.

    I wish more politicians would get involved in this way. It would provide those who are more uncomfortable with the Lyme disease controversy or unsure of what they think to help form their own opinion, to get answers to these kinds of questions. They go to the heart of finding how big of a problem these illnesses are.

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  2. She has been working very hard for patients with Lyme Disease and talking to others in both houses of Parliament. However I can guess the sort of evasive replies she will receive. Still 2012 is proving to be the year of tiny baby steps in the right direction.

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