Lyme Disease, the host’s innate and specific immune system can be diminished resulting in reduced immune surveillance and antibody production. This imbalanced immune response is often coupled with excessive oxidative stress and cellular damage, which further exacerbate symptoms of chronic fatigue and pain. During the development of a multifaceted treatment plan, practitioners should consider implementing complementary therapies such as Ozone therapy, HBOT, and Phosphatidylcholine therapy to: stimulate and modulate immune function, upregulate antioxidant pathways, increase tissue oxygenation, restore mitochondrial function, and repair damaged cellular membranes.

Systemic ozone therapies such as Ozone Autohemotherapy and Extracorporeal Blood Oxygenation and Ozonation elicit immune stimulation via the release of intermediary cytokines such as IL-2, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-a, and IFN-y. Through these cytokine pathways, ozone therapy promotes T cell and NK cell proliferation, increasing immune activity. Simultaneously, ozone therapy produces hydrogen peroxide and 4-hydroxinonenal aldehyde (4-HNE) as byproducts, which moderate cellular defense mechanisms. In response to these reactive oxygen species (ROS), the transcription factor Nrf2 pathway becomes activated, increasing production of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione S-transferase. By up-regulating antioxidant pathways and increasing tissue oxygenation, ozone therapy attains a stabilizing effect on the immune system. Similar to ozone therapy, hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) transiently increases reactive oxygen species in order to stimulate: antioxidant production through the Nrf2 pathway and growth factors including: vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Additionally, HBOT has been shown in several studies to facilitate mitochondrial metabolism. Through these mechanisms, ozone therapy and HBOT can improve symptomology resulting from chronic Lyme infection by improving immune response, increasing antioxidant reserve, and mitigating levels of oxidative damage.

Phosphatidylcholine Therapy, or membrane lipid replacement, effectively repairs cellular membranes that have been damaged by free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) during the course of chronic infection. By restoring the mitochondrial membranes, membrane lipid replacement therapy increases the trans-membrane potential of the inner mitochondrial membrane to enhance ATP production. MLR has been utilized in numerous clinical studies to treat moderate to severe chronic fatigue associated with chronic Lyme with significant positive outcomes. By pulsing oxidative therapies and MLR, practitioners can greatly enhance treatment outcomes in cases of chronic Lyme and tick-borne coinfections.