A patient referred me to this interesting research paper that specifically implicates some of these little buggers in everything from joint disease to arthritis. Surprisingly, this document is eleven years old and not easily found. The research was funded by the NIH, it is found on the CDC site:
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol3no1/baseman.htm
It is notable that the NIH now provides little funding for this kind of research; I heard its actually none. I'll see if I can confirm this. Here’s an excerpt relating to a recent post in another forum:
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Rheumatoid Arthritis and Other Human Arthritides
The occurrence of various Mycoplasma and Ureaplasma species in joint tissues of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, sexually transmitted reactive arthritis, and other human arthritides can no longer be ignored (8). A clinical trial of long-term (6 to 12 months) antibiotic (doxycycline) therapy before cartilage destruction might prove beneficial in managing such frequent and often debilitating infections.
Extensive clinical and microbiological evidence indicates that mycoplasmas alone can elicit a spectrum of illness for which no other agents are incriminated. The eradication of these pathogenic mycoplasmas from various tissue sites requires an intact and functional immune system, although persons with fully competent immune systems may have difficulty eliminating mycoplasmas, even with recommended prolonged drug therapy. Nonetheless, mycoplasmas are still viewed as subordinates to other infectious agents and are relegated to a category of commensals that unwittingly cause disease in patients whose immune systems offer little resistance to microbial stress and overload.