July 9, 2005
Sexton will miss entire season
Florida State QB Wyatt Sexton will miss the entire 2005 season after having been diagnosed with Lyme disease. Sexton, who was hospitalized in mid-June, and his family visited Dr. S. Chandra Swami, a specialist in the field earlier this week to finalize the diagnosis.
Sexton's was diagnosed with a late stage of Lyme disease. His organs are infected and he will need to undergo a intensive i.v. anti-biotic therapy over a period of months. Lyme disease bacteria are transmitted to humans by ticks that are carried by deer.
The disease is often identified by an expanding "bull's-eye" rash that develops days to weeks after a tick bite. Other symptoms include tiredness, fever, muscle aches and joint pain.
Dr. S. Chandra Swami:
"Wyatt has active Lyme Disease that has resulted in neuropsychiatric and cardiovascular deficits. I have strongly recommended intensive therapy with a goal to obtain an optimal state of health. This should include academics and athletics. He should not be stressed by these two disciplines for now."
Sexton's family thanked Seminole fans for their support of the QB during the diagnosis, but criticized the media speculation regarding their son:
In a statement released through FSU's Sports Information Office, Wyatt's parents, Joy and Billy Sexton, said: "We appreciate the many expressions of support for our son shown by those in our community, church and the Florida State football family. It has been a very difficult time for Wyatt. It has also been hurtful to Wyatt and our family to see some media reports that were simply not true. We expect him to fully recover. In the meantime, we ask that his privacy be respected."Florida State is expected to apply for a medical hardship for Sexton to obtain a sixth year of eligibility, as he has already exhausted his redshirt season.
While Sexton is out, the two redshirt freshman QBs, Xavier Lee and Drew Weatherford, will compete for the Seminoles starting position, according to FSU Head Coach Bobby Bowden:
"I feel very good about Xavier and Drew because they look like they have what you are looking for in a quarterback prospect. They don't have the time you would want them to have, that's one thing that isn't in their favor. They will have to speed up the process of getting mentally and physically ready to play because one of them is going to start against Miami. We would love to have experience, but I'd rather have talent over experience. There is definitely a lot of talent there with those two quarterbacks."
Hat tips: Fanblogs tipsters schmed & Todd.
Comments:
Matt Hurley said:
posted on July 14, 2005 10:56 PM — 4.129.81.168 — link — abuse?
Hey guys, you on here talkin about a guy that has a disease, and had a promising career ahead of him. You think anyone wants to here yalls crap. The guy has lymes disease. If you think he did acid or whatever, leave it to yourself. I promise you they're not just sayin he has lymes disease. Just close you mouth's if you can't respect him for puttin up with all this shit people like you put him through.
LymeVA said:
posted on July 21, 2005 12:21 PM — 64.203.176.178 — link — abuse?
Look folks, let me offer a little insight from my point of view. I don't know Sexton and I don't all the details of his situation (which I'm sure none of you do either). What I do know is that I have a wife who suffers from chronic lyme disease and we've been fighting every facet of the disease for the past year. The medical community hardly recognizes this as a "disease" (especially in the chronic or late stage forms) because of the CDC criteria for diagnosis. Without the presence of a tick bite and the well-known "bulls eye" rash, practitioners are reluctant to offer a lyme diagnosis. Therefore, there are no truly recognized lyme disease "specialists" anywhere. My wife has been preemptively diagnosed by the general medical community (i.e. our family doctor, immune specialists, even the UVA medical center) with multiple sclerosis, chronic fatigue syndrome, HIV/AIDS, lupus, cancer, and the list goes on. It wasn't until we went to a controversial self-proclaimed specialist (who, as in Dr. Swami's case, is actually a general practitioner claiming specialization in the study and treatment of tick-born illnesses), that we got the proper tests run for lyme and received an accurate diagnosis. This disease has caused my wife myriad problems; in her profession, at home, with her family, and so on. She has missed months of work because of the pain she feels. She is forgetful and she often acts in a way that most would consider "crazy." (An MRI indicated a 7mm lesion in her frontal lobe as a result of the disease.) I was unable to physically touch her for about 3 months because her nerves were so hypersensitive, another symptom of the disease.
As far as the skeptics out there concerning Mr. Sexton's situation, the western blot (the blood test used to determine the presence of the lyme bacteria) takes anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks to process, sometimes even longer. A month to receive results is average. Doctors in the northeast are more familiar with the disease as it originated in that area and thus has a higher frequency of the illness. In other words, Lyme diease isn't native to Florida, therefore doctors in, say, Pennsylvania have more experience with treatment of Lyme.
I suspect, and this is just my opinion, that one of the main reasons for the lack of research into Lyme disease is the fact that it is treated by a simple (and inexpensive) antibiotic. There is no financial benefit to the research. I argue that if Merck, Pfizer, or any of the other corporate drug-dealers came out with a lyme-specific medication, then it would become more of an accepted, mainstream disease and diagnoses would become more abundant.
Between the weird symptoms and behaviors, many would accuse my wife of being crazy, looking for attention, or even on drugs. These claims couldn't be farther from the truth.
I guess my rant here is to those of you who don't know what you're talking about with regard to lyme disease. I feel bad for Sexton as well as Swami because they have to defend themselves as a result of the ignorance that exists around this ailment. I hope that Sexton recovers and doesn't have to live through the lifelong debilitating effects of this horrible disease. This disease is real. I wish Sexton the best of luck in his recovery and though I'm sad to hear of another case, maybe his position in the public eye will bring more awareness and recognition to the disease.
Here, go Educate yourselves.
Thanks for reading.
Dianne said:
posted on August 11, 2005 12:47 PM — 169.139.224.11 — link — abuse?
Glad to read LymeVA's comments. You are right on target! I also have Lyme Disease. I went to 19 doctors from 1997 to 2002 before I received a diagnosis using the Western Blot. I began treatment and had a very bad relapse and other undiagnosed complications begin in Sept. 2004. As a result I found Dr. Swami and he has done wonders for me! He found three other illnesses that the Lyme had caused and began treatment for them. No one else ever even tested for the associated illnesses.
I wish Wyatt Sexton and Dr. Swami the best of success in treating the disease.
I hope that all the judgmental folks on this blog who have "assumed" it was drugs, etc. will learn to get the facts before judging someone. There are so many illnesses out here that we are uninformed about that cause strange behaviors. We first need to get the medical community to LISTEN to the patient, diagnose correctly and then treat properly.
thanks
LYMEE said:
posted on August 14, 2005 11:51 AM — 71.1.143.206 — link — abuse?
LymeVA,
I too have had the same issues as your wife, including misdiagnosis by UVA. I have been trying to get in touch with you with no luck to find out who your wife is seeing. I am in Virginia as well and have been going through this for 15 years.MedGator said:
posted on September 5, 2005 11:04 AM — 70.179.99.193 — link — abuse?
First of all...yes I'm biased. Second, anyone reading any kind of legitimate study relating to symptomology of late stage Lyme Disease will read that individuals suffering this disease do not exhibit the symptoms Mr. Sexton did. LymeVA, I do not know the symptoms your wife has/had, but I'm sure she wasnt found on the street in the middle of the night dressed only in wet shorts, jumping on top of cars, yelling out to pedestrians that she was "God" and then later claiming to be "Gods son" and then resisting with police to the point that she had to be sprayed with pepper spray. Late stage Lyme disease causes neuropathy and severe fatigue and lethargy. Late stage Lyme is also slow to develop. Mr. Sexton's health at FSU is such a priority considering he's the starting QB that I find it hard to believe that none of his coaches, trainers, teammates, family, or team medical staff didn't pick up any hint that he was sick. I believe he was intoxicated with some illicit drug, PCP comes to mind first since I see this countless times in the ER where I work. Its too bad people are defending this behavior and this poor excuse for a diagnosis; too many times athletes in our community are given breaks for their transgressions. I wish Mr. Sexton all the best, but I dont believe for a second he has Lyme Disease. I challenge Dr. Swami to publish a Case Study in a reputable medical journal when this case of "Lyme Disease" has finally been settled and cured...we'll see if this ever happens. And finally...GO GATORS!
Roger said:
posted on September 5, 2005 8:43 PM — 64.12.116.139 — link — abuse?
MedGator must fit right in with the medical community - arrogant, pompous and can diagnose without ever seeing the patient!
Reminds me of my wife's own struggles getting a diagnosis and treatment for her Lyme Disease. If you are actually interested in real research and not just looking down an sick folks, check out Dr. Brian Fallon's research on neuropsychiatric effects of Lyme Disease. Every possible psychiatric diagnosis has been given for neuroborreliosis, which coincidentally goes away when the patient gets IV antibiotics - What a coincidence! Must have something to do with the patient no longer getting any more PCP?
If MedGator does not look into this valid research, then he is exactly what I say he is, arrogant and ignorant.tim said:
posted on January 10, 2006 12:39 PM — 209.183.206.28 — link — abuse?
Dont go to Dr Chandra Swami.... Run as fast as you can the other way! Everyone that goes to him is diagnosed with Lyme disease! I went after my sister had been diagnosed.... after the test he said I had it ... my sister took her daughter... she also had it... my sisters friend went, she had it also! We became friends with his nurse who also "had it" so did her brother , daughter ect..... and the big one DR Swami "has it too"!!!I contacted the Lyme disease foundation and they said DO NOT follow Dr Swamis antibiotic therapy!!!! He is not respected by his peers because they know he is a nut. run fast away from him. Believe me, We all became friends and I know alot of personal things about him and am suprised that he still has his license...
Geoff said:
posted on January 16, 2006 1:37 PM — 66.57.61.234 — link — abuse?
Anyone read the newspaper today? Looks like the kid wasn't lying. Turns out he probally did have lyme disease. For the so called experts who claim the kid is doing drugs, get a life. If you don't have a great degree of infomation except the public information available from the CDC to the general public (read not medical scientists) then shut up.
I am a medical scientist. The Disease causes all of the symptoms this individual had. There is no treatment protocol on late stage disease. There have been only 3 studies to date on treatment with late stage disease. The only reputable study with a homogenious class of study participants has only recently been completed at Columbia University. Turns out 50 percent of all lyme cases respond to relativly simpy courses of therapy. The other 50 percent need on average 10 weeks of intravenous Rocephin.
Furthermore, Lyme Disease is not diagnosed through blood tests........yet. We are close, but not there. The scientific rigor required has not been met, and that is why the diagnosis is made on clinical grounds and other labratory makers from blood tests. This is a new disease, and relativly little is known about the later stages. We know from rhenus monkey studies that the disease can invade the nervous system in as little as 10 days after inoculation with Borrelia.
Secondly, Late stage lyme can occur in as little as one month, but generally takes as much as 9 months with infection.
As far as his having symtoms before hand, there are records indicating bizzare behavior from this player as far back as February 2005.
Otis Campbell said:
posted on September 1, 2006 1:58 PM — 160.131.153.155 — link — abuse?
What ever became of Wyatt Sexton? Yes he did show bizarre behavior way before he went bezerk in the street, but what exactly was he doing? We know one thing for sure,...we don't know what really happened. I have heard people say they saw him at parties doing drugs and getting ripped. I have also heard the Lymes Tick story. Wyatt ...what really happened??
Ev Land said:
posted on September 13, 2006 5:12 PM — 24.179.20.51 — link — abuse?
Yes, people have completely healed from Lyme. There are many useful alternative treatments that work in concert with pharma. I suggest you visit the http://www.Lyme-disease-research-database.com. You will find all the information you need there.
Good health,
Ev
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Robert said:
posted on July 11, 2005 2:27 PM — 161.247.135.55 — link — abuse?So did he take acid before or after Lyme? Or did a bunch of people rush the judgement on him ???