Lyme and Vasculitis
I'm not sure if anyone's posted about there this here recently, but here's a fantastic article about the interplay between Lyme and Vasculitis.
https://physicscore.com/articles/lyme-disease-vasculitis-intersection/
I'm just going to drop some additional info in case it's helpful:
I recently discovered that I've had untreated Lyme for something like 15 years, and this article pretty much explains my entire journey. My most visible symptoms over the course of that time were arthritis and varicose veins, leading to an outbreak on my left leg of what was initially diagnosed as "leukocytoclastic vasculitis."
If you get this diagnosis, take that as a sign to get tested for Lyme. ("LCV is often a reaction to an underlying trigger, although the exact cause is sometimes never found."). I was then tested for everything from HIV to Rheumatoid arthritis.
My journey of misdiagnosis was: dermatology, which referred me to my hospital's vein center, which referred me to rheumatology, looking for autoimmune disorders. None of the bloodwork came back with anything obvious, and my rheumatologist literally shrugged when he went over my bloodwork with me. Fed up with the hospital system, I started seeing a naturopath, and she ordered a Lyme-specific test after trying a few other things. Sure enough...
Here's a line in the above article I wish I had known:
"Cases of Lyme disease exhibiting vasculitis symptoms pose a diagnostic challenge and emphasize the need for interdisciplinary approaches in managing patient care."
I've been blessed with a fairly manageable case, but I still wouldn't want anyone to go through what I've been through.