<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12764236#post12764236 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wolf pup
Bye bye :wavehand:
Let's all remember that there is no one right method.
True. But there are a plethora of wrong ones.
As someone with significant experience in battling cyptocaryon irritans and fully understanding the lifecycle of the parasite and how it is killed and weakened, I can tell you that none of the "reef safe"....NONE OF THEM....are proven to work. If they were, you'd hear more about it in the hobby literature and not just on forums where anyone and everyone is encouraged to communicate......despite the factual basis of their claims. It is good for us all to post our experiences and that is how the hobby can move forward and maybe improve someone's situation.
So am I saying that supposed reef safe additives have never worked...not at all. There are those folks out there who have added these items and seen the retreat of the parasite in their system. They are the minority. And while their experience is not to be discarded, it should not be thrown in the face of all the research on these items that has been performed and the results that have shown dismal cure results. Just like those people who have used prayer and other non medicinal means to "cure" cancer. I would never advocate that someone not pray, but these are not accepted as "proven" means by most. That is because they have not worked for the majority of folks that have tried them. I would urge cancer patients to seek the more traditional cures and supplement with prayer.
In regards to these reef safe medicines, we are not talking about things that have not been studied......many have. They might help some folks, but they do not provide the definitive cure to the majority of those that use them. That is why they are so strongly discounted. Copper remains the gold standard to CURE crypt infestations. I have also used hypo and hypo is reported to work in the literature if applied correctly.
There is an immunity factor in the eradication of the parasites from fish. Boosting immunity can allow the fish to get the upperhand. If you are seeing fish becoming increasingly covered in the parasite with each subsequent outbreak, then immunity is not the route for you as you are losing that battle. There is some new research suggesting that after 11 months of fish surviving in a crypt infested system, that the parasite loses a great deal of its virility and the fish seem to survive with it just fine. But, how many make it to 11 months? I submit...not many.
It is sad to see so many of these discussions turn to "p i s sing contests". There has been some good dialogue on this thread and hopefully...if nothing else....it will encourage those that really want to learn about this scourge of the hobby to find the reputable sources of info and read up. Of course, hopefully in the process, they will learn how to avoid it in the first place....that is my wish.
Piece out.