Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) for Lyme Disease

Like many Lyme disease patients, Lyndi Scott-Strite experienced a long and difficult diagnosis process. Growing up in Connecticut during the 1980s, she pulled ticks off of her legs every summer but thought nothing of it. That was until she began to experience fatigue, brain fog, and unwarranted weight gain as early as college. Lyndi’s neurological symptoms grew worse with time.

Eventually, she had a breakthrough. Around 2007 she was diagnosed with a hypothyroid issue and was advised by her primary physician to seek additional diagnostic testing for tick-borne disease. Advised to visit Dr. Robert Mozeyani, a member of ILADS and Washington D.C.-based LLMD, Lyndi went through the additional steps of testing for Lyme and its related co-infections. While her Lyme test didn’t come back with enough bands to count as a CDC positive case, Dr. Mozeyani speculated this was because she likely contracted Lyme years ago, giving time for the Borrelia to disguise itself. However, she did come back positive for Babesia and Bartonella in their respective tests. Finally, Lyndi had an answer for what had been debilitating her all these years. 

Treating her illness was the next hurdle. She was prescribed a round of antibiotics immediately following her diagnosis. This prescription led to some symptom relief, but it was short-lived. Lyndi began trying additional treatment protocols including natural and herbal remedies which had little effect. She was eventually referred to another Lyme specialist in the D.C. area, Dr. Joseph Jemsek, who put her through an additional round of antibiotics in 2015. While she again initially had symptom relief, her relapse back to living with debilitating symptoms was swift. 

Several years passed before Lyndi began to try fighting her illness again. In early 2020, her parents gave her information on an up-and-coming treatment center that they felt she should try. Aviv Clinics is a medical center that leverages innovative Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT), as well as complementary services to increase cognitive function including brain games and nutritional counseling. Beginning her treatment soon after researching the clinic, Lyndi took several “dives” into the HBOT chamber over a three-month period. Since then, she has gone in for some maintenance “dives” to keep the progress she has made. The medical team at Aviv showed Lyndi where she had made progress. Comparing brain scans from when she first arrived to after she completed treatment, there was clear evidence that the oxygen in her brain had returned to normal levels, and her inflammation had all but disappeared. 

It has been over a year since Lyndi was treated at Aviv Clinics and she says she has feels the best she has in years. In our interview, she carried conversation without getting out of breath, only has minor issues with recall, and barely has brain fog. While there is still no clear cure for Lyme disease, it does seem the innovative treatment at Aviv Clinics may offer an avenue to recovery for some patients. 

---