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Lyme Disease Science Blog Archive
Blog & Podcast Posts – 2020
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Powassan virus in children. Case reports 12/28/2020 - Powassan virus in children is not often reported. In this article, the authors describe powassan virus in children involving two infants with tick bites who developed Powassan virus encephalitis. As the authors point out, their case report not only demonstrates that rapid transmission of POWV can occur, but it highlights the importance for parents/caregivers to […] Read More |
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4 distinct post-treatment Lyme disease syndromes? 12/27/2020 - Individuals who suffer from persistent symptoms may be diagnosed with a post-treatment lyme disease syndrome or ‘chronic Lyme disease.’ Studies estimate that between 34% and 62% of patients continue to have ongoing, chronic symptoms even after standard antibiotic therapy. Many remain ill for months to years. In fact, according to one study, 34% of a […] Read More |
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Three deaths associated with Lyme carditis 12/27/2020 - Hello, and welcome to another Inside Lyme Podcast. I am your host Dr. Daniel Cameron. In this podcast, I will be discussing three deaths associated with Lyme carditis. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Three deaths associated with Lyme carditis I first read about these cases in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) published by the […] Read More |
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Could Borrelia miyamotoi infections explain persistent symptoms in Lyme disease patients? 12/20/2020 - Borrelia miyamotoi (BM) is another tick-borne pathogen and “unlike Lyme disease, erythema migrans rash, and arthralgias are uncommon,” the authors write in the journal Frontiers in Medicine. The infection is diagnosed with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) called glycerophosphodiester phosphodiesterase (GlpQ) enzyme immunoassay. Investigators looked at the incidence of BM in 82 patients who were seeking a […] Read More |
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16-year-old male with Lyme disease presenting with palpitations and chest pain 12/09/2020 - Welcome to another edition of Inside Lyme Podcast with Dr. Daniel Cameron. I will be discussing a case featuring a 16-year-old boy who exhibited cardiac symptoms, including palpitations and chest pain, due to Lyme disease. The boy was later diagnosed with Lyme carditis. By Dr. Daniel Cameron A 16-year-old male with Lyme disease presenting with […] Read More |
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What are treatments for Lyme disease? 11/11/2020 - The Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) and the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) have each published their own set of evidence-based treatment guidelines. IDSA guidelines recommend a short course of antibiotics, typically 14 to 30 days. IDSA argues that the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria does not persist in a patient beyond this timeframe […] Read More |
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Infections can impact tick behavior and increase survival 10/21/2020 - In the article, “Pathogens Manipulating Tick Behavior—Through a Glass, Darkly,” Benelli reviews the literature on tick behavior triggered by infections with Anaplasma, Borrelia, Babesia, Bartonella, Rickettsia, and tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV).¹ You might think a deer tick would be worse off if infected. But, not so. It appears that deer ticks are actually more likely […] Read More |
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What does a Lyme disease rash look like? 10/21/2020 - If patients are expecting a Lyme disease rash to look like the typical Bull’s-eye lesion they may miss receiving an accurate diagnosis. “The assumption that all EM [rashes] look like the classic target lesion” can lead to diagnostic errors, warns Burlina and colleagues in their article “AI-based detection of erythema migrans and disambiguation against other […] Read More |
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What are Lyme disease co-infections? 10/13/2020 - Today, ticks harbor multiple infectious pathogens that can be transmitted to humans through a tick bite or tainted blood transfusion. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) now reports that “a single tick can transmit multiple pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, and parasites.” [1] This can result in patients developing what is referred to as […] Read More |
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Signs and symptoms of Lyme disease 10/07/2020 - While many people associate Lyme disease with manifestations such as Bell’s palsy, the circular Bull’s-eye rash, and flu-like symptoms, Lyme disease can also cause sensory, cognitive, neurologic, and cardiac complications, even in its earliest stage. But, the signs and symptoms of Lyme disease are all too frequently attributed to another medical condition. Objective signs of […] Read More |
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What is Lyme disease? 09/29/2020 - Lyme disease is an infection caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb), a spiral-shaped organism. The bacterium can be transmitted to a person through the bite of an infected Ixodes scapularis tick (a.k.a., the deer tick or black-legged tick). Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria is a type of spirochete that can penetrate virtually any organ or system […] Read More |
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Lyme disease vaccine for humans: Would you trust it? 09/18/2020 - LYMErix was reportedly effective at preventing a Lyme disease rash. But the Lyme disease vaccine for humans was only 50% effective at preventing other manifestations of Lyme disease, according to the LYMErix package insert. LYMErix was voluntarily removed from the market due to low demand. In a survey of 1,015 adults in the U.S., author […] Read More |
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When do ticks quest, waiting for their next meal? 09/18/2020 - So far, research has focused on questing behavior primarily in the laboratory. “Ticks must balance the need to quest for blood meal hosts with the risk of desiccation, all on a fixed energy budget,” writes Thomas from Washington State University. ¹ But Thomas and his team wanted to investigate questing patterns in a natural habitat. […] Read More |
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Lyme disease sleep disorders 09/13/2020 - Dr. Robert Bransfield, a New Jersey-based psychiatrist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of tick-borne illnesses, has seen a broad range of sleep disorders in Lyme disease patients treated at his practice. He describes the various sleep disorders in the article “Neuropsychiatric Lyme Borreliosis: An Overview with a Focus on a Specialty Psychiatrist’s Clinical […] Read More |
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Could Lyme disease in children lead to parental flooding? 09/13/2020 - Could Lyme disease in children lead to parental flooding described in a recent paper? Parents experiencing flooding “are overwhelmed by the intensity and aversive nature of child negative affect,” writes Del Vecchio and colleagues in the Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology.1 When this occurs, parents “may be less likely to react effectively and instead may […] Read More |
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Can Lyme disease impact pregnancy outcome? 09/10/2020 - The study by researchers in Slovenia looked at the potential effects of Lyme disease on pregnancy outcome. In their article, “Course and Outcome of Erythema Migrans in Pregnant Women,” Maraspin and colleagues describe pregnancy course and outcome for 304 women who were treated with antibiotics for early Lyme disease. All of the women had been […] Read More |
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Ticks live and thrive in the Alps 09/05/2020 - Over a 4-year period, investigators examined ticks that Live in the Alps and their transmitted pathogens, along with the altitudinal limit of Ixodes ricinus ticks (which are similar to Ixodes scapularis ticks in the USA) in the Piedmont region of the Alps.ticks live A total of 6492 I. ricinus ticks were collected from the vegetation. […] Read More |
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Are doctors reluctant to diagnose Lyme disease? 09/05/2020 - Investigators asked clinicians to review 11 cases of Lyme disease to determine if doctors are reluctant to diagnose Lyme disease. They found that only 5 cases contained Lyme disease on their differential diagnosis list, and only 2 cases were coded as Lyme disease, writes Tulloch. The Lyme disease case presentations varied: Classic erythema migrans (EM) […] Read More |
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Lyme disease misdiagnosed as shingles in a 62-year-old man 08/30/2020 - According to Hansen and colleagues, Lyme disease was misdiagnosed as shingles but later correctly diagnosed with Lyme disease. The patient was admitted to the emergency department complaining of epigastric pain that had been ongoing for 4 to 5 weeks. “He described a constant pain with episodic worsening,” writes Hansen. The pain began with a rash […] Read More |
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Six cases of neurological Lyme disease 08/30/2020 - Bannwarth syndrome is characterized by painful radiculopathy, neuropathy, varying degrees of motor weakness and facial nerve palsy, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) lymphocytic pleocytosis. Five patients presented with peripheral nervous system involvement (primarily axonal in nature), which is consistent with BWS, writes Shah and colleagues. Three of the cases of neurological lyme disease are discussed below. 61-year-old […] Read More |
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Can Lyme disease cause dementia? 08/23/2020 - In a retrospective study, entitled “Secondary dementia due to Lyme neuroborreliosis,” Kristoferitsch and colleagues describe several case reports of patients diagnosed with dementia-like syndromes due to Lyme neuroborreliosis or Lyme disease that help address the question – can lyme disease cause dementia.2 Rapid improvement with antibiotic treatment The authors’ case report featuring a 76-year-old woman […] Read More |
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Successful treatment for Lyme arthritis after knee surgery 08/23/2020 - Doctors described a 67-year-old avid outdoorsman who received treatment for Lyme arthritis after having had knee surgery. Ten months earlier, the man had received a partial knee replacement for his left knee due to advanced single compartment degenerative arthritis. Over a 3-month-period, the man developed progressive left knee pain and swelling. He later presented with a […] Read More |
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Can Lyme disease cause jaundice? 08/17/2020 - Two recently published case reports address the question: Can Lyme disease cause jaundice? While it is uncommon, the authors conclude, hyperbilirubinemia can be a sign of Lyme disease, and should be considered as a differential diagnosis in patients with severe jaundice and exposure to areas endemic for Lyme disease. 1,2 39-year-old man with fever and […] Read More |
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Atypical symptoms of Lyme disease: numbness, paresthesia and abdominal wall weakness 08/17/2020 - “A 58-year-old woman was seen in the outpatient neurology clinic of this hospital in early autumn because of hypoesthesia [numbness], paresthesia, and weakness,” writes Reda and colleagues in a paper describing atypical symptoms of Lyme disease. Her initial symptoms began 10 weeks prior with back pain occurring between her shoulders. But the pain resolved without […] Read More |
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Subacute transverse myelitis caused by Borrelia infection 08/09/2020 - Subacute transverse myelitis is a neurologic syndrome caused by inflammation of the spinal cord. It can be caused by various infections, including Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria causing Lyme disease. Immune system disorders, vascular and other inflammatory disorders can also trigger the condition which damages or destroys myelin, an insulating substance that surrounds nerves, including those in […] Read More |
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Lyme disease infection triggers heart block in young man 08/09/2020 - If left untreated, Lyme disease can progress causing heart block and other cardiac problems, such as cardiomyopathy and myocarditis “due to spirochete infiltration of cardiac and pericardial structures,” according to the authors of a newly published case report.¹ “Clinical suspicion of early disseminated Lyme carditis is essential in patients presenting with new-onset high-degree AV [heart] […] Read More |
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Lyme disease and depression case 08/05/2020 - One study found a high prevalence of depression in Lyme disease patients. Between January 2008 and December 2014, 1 in 5 patients treated at the Lyme Center Apeldoorn in the Netherlands was diagnosed with depression and Lyme disease. ¹ Meanwhile, Dr. Robert Bransfield, a psychiatrist specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of tick-borne illnesses, reports “In my […] Read More |
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Atypical findings in Lyme disease makes diagnosing difficult 07/30/2020 - Lyme disease can present with a broad range of symptoms. Many of them are familiar to clinicians. But in some cases, a patient may exhibit atypical symptoms, including rashes other than the well-known “bull’s eye” rash. These unique presentations of Lyme disease can make diagnosing the illness particularly difficult. For instance, Sharma reports, “Our case […] Read More |
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POTS patients with brain fog have neurocognitive deficits 07/30/2020 - A recent study by Wells and colleagues ¹ confirms findings from previous studies which demonstrated that POTS patients with brain fog have impaired short-term memory and diminished alertness. POTS is characterized by a substantial increase in heart rate and sometimes a drop in blood pressure when the individual stands up. This can cause lightheadedness, heart […] Read More |
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Lyme arthritis following an operation – 5 cases 07/27/2020 - Hess and colleagues discuss 5 cases, reported in the literature, in which Lyme arthritis following an operation. [1] Case 1 The first case they cite involved a 38-year-old woman who had undergone knee surgery. She had a “bone-patellar tendon-bone reconstruction of her anterior cruciate ligament along with a staged autologous chondrocyte transplantation to repair a […] Read More |
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POTS : An autonomic disorder in Lyme disease patients 07/20/2020 - In the journal Cureus , Tahir and colleagues describe the symptoms and treatment of POTS,¹ a condition often seen in Lyme disease, which causes the heart rate to rise by at least 30 beats per minute for adults and at least 40 points for children “when the person stands up from a recumbent position.” The […] Read More |
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Tick bites during pregnancy. A perspective. 07/20/2020 - The authors cite studies with “high-level evidence” recommending prophylaxis treatment of tick bites during pregnancy with a single dose of 200 mg of doxycycline. The risk, they say, to the unborn baby is low. “Previously, doxycycline was avoided in pregnancy and in children under 8 years of age because of concerns about adverse effects similar […] Read More |
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Babesia in dogs – implications for people 07/14/2020 - Investigators looked at several tick-transmitted diseases including Babesia, in dogs, to help determine potential risks to humans. Hunting dogs, specifically, were tracked as they are exposed to ticks more often than pet dogs. And they are more likely to be outdoors for long periods in tick habitats and less likely to be groomed for ticks […] Read More |
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Cavalier attitude towards Lyme infection 07/14/2020 - “One day, when traveling in California for a meeting, I received a call informing me that one of my sons, then aged 39, had been walking his dog when he collapsed into unconsciousness with a heart rate of 35/minute and had been taken to a local hospital,” writes Plotkin.¹ A Lyme infection was suspected. His […] Read More |
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Could POTS and Lyme disease patients suffer impaired cognitive function when standing? 07/08/2020 - Patients with autoimmune disorders are at risk for POTS, along with individuals who have had a viral illness or a serious infection, such as Lyme disease. In fact, POTS and Lyme disease patients often present with similar symptoms. For instance, POTS patients frequently report having “brain fog,” also a common complaint among Lyme disease patients. […] Read More |
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No evidence single doxycycline dosage for Lyme disease prevention is effective in children 07/08/2020 - The authors reference a small study to support their recommendation for using a single doxycycline dosage for Lyme disease prevention. The study, conducted by Drs. Fish, Nadelman and Wormser, however, involved adults, not children. ² And it was designed to demonstrate that a single dose of doxycycline could prevent an erythma migrans (EM) rash. It […] Read More |
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Disseminated Lyme disease more likely in those with weakened immune system 06/29/2020 - A small study examined the risk of developing disseminated Lyme disease for people with weakened immune systems. Researchers enrolled 7 patients with an EM (erythema migrans) rash who were diagnosed with Lyme disease. In these 7 patients, signs of disseminated LB (43%) and the isolation rates of borreliae from blood before antibiotic treatment (40%) were […] Read More |
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New treatments for Lyme disease on the horizon? 06/23/2020 - Study findings suggest that current Lyme disease treatment may not eliminate the Borrelia burgdorferi infection or the immune system may fail to clear the infection or bacterial debris, resulting in ongoing symptoms. In the past few years, several new treatments for Lyme disease have been investigated in the laboratory or made available to patients in […] Read More |
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Central sensitization syndrome worsens Lyme disease symptoms? 06/22/2020 - Central sensitization syndrome (CSS) involves changes in the central nervous system, particularly the brain and spinal cord. This syndrome “is thought to involve hyperactivation of central neurons, leading to various synaptic and neurotransmitter/neuromodulator changes,” writes Batheja. There are several potential causes of central sensitization, which include: • Genetic factors • Increase in neurotransmitters that facilitate […] Read More |
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Lyme disease increases risk of atrial fibrillation 06/17/2020 - Although researchers have gained a better understanding of atrial fibrillation, also called AFib or AF, many of the causes and risk factors are still unknown. Now, for the first time, a study examines the prevalence of atrial fibrillation in Lyme disease patients. “It is hypothesized that in some cases the AF [atrial fibrillation] might be […] Read More |
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Late stage Lyme disease treatment might include azlocillin in the future. 06/17/2020 - Researchers identified azlocillin after screening nearly 8,000 drug compounds. They found that in the test tube and in mice, azlocillin was effective against drug-tolerant Borrelia burgdorferi s.s., the pathogen causing Lyme disease. But will late stage Lyme disease treatment soon include azlocillin, an FDA-approved drug that is often used to treat infections such as Pseudomonas […] Read More |
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Raccoons infected with Babesia microti in Texas 06/11/2020 - Previous studies in Florida revealed two distinct groups of Babesia microti which were dependent on host species (i.e. cotton rats and raccoons). Investigators in the current study looked for the presence of Babesia species in small and medium-sized mammals in East Texas. A total of 480 wild mammals were trapped, sampled, and screened. Using molecular analysis, they identified […] Read More |
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Is Lyme disease like the Tortoise in Aesop’s “The Tortoise and the Hare”? 06/11/2020 - The Tortoise and the Hare fable tells the story of a race between a tortoise (a creature that moves very slowly) and a hare (a creature that can run very fast). The hare is very confident of winning, so it stops during the race and falls asleep. The tortoise continues to move very slowly but […] Read More |
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Babesia microti imported into foreign countries 06/06/2020 - “Recently, sporadic cases of human babesiosis caused by several species of Babesia have been reported in other countries,” write the authors of “Imported Human Babesiosis, Singapore, 2018.” [1] These imported Babesia microti cases include: Babesia microti (Germany, Australia, South Korea) Babesia microti-like (Japan, Taiwan, China) Babesia duncani (United States, Canada) Babesia divergens (Europe) Babesia venatorum […] Read More |
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Babesia infections and tick-borne agents transmitted through blood supply 06/06/2020 - In their article, the authors summarized discussions from a public workshop, organized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The workshop, addressing babesia and tick-borne infections entitled “Emerging Tick-Borne Diseases and Blood Safety,” included experts on tick-borne diseases, representatives from blood centers, academia, government agencies, and manufacturers of diagnostic kits. The workshop’s goal was to […] Read More |
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Can service dogs help patients with Lyme disease and other chronic illnesses? 05/31/2020 - Click here to watch a 13 second video of a Lyme patient with a service dog Service dogs, the authors explain, can assist people with functional physical disabilities, such as the visually impaired or individuals who require diabetic or epileptic monitoring. “Mobility service dogs can assist those with physical disabilities by performing tasks such as […] Read More |
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Using dogs to map Lyme disease 05/31/2020 - Typically, there is a delay in diagnosing dogs with Lyme disease. Based on their review of the literature, the authors summarized several reasons for this: “The first signs of clinical disease in dogs are non-specific, including fever, general malaise, lameness, and swelling of local lymph nodes. These symptoms are likely to be overlooked by dog […] Read More |
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What nesting songbirds tell us about Lyme disease in Canada? 05/26/2020 - “We estimate that migratory birds disperse 50 million to 175 million I. scapularis [deer] ticks across Canada each spring, implicating migratory birds as possibly significant in I. scapularis range expansion in Canada,” wrote Ogen and colleagues¹ in their discussion of birds and Lyme disease. A study by Scott et al., however, finds that migratory songbirds, […] Read More |
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Can Bell’s palsy lead to nonflaccid facial palsy in Lyme disease? 05/26/2020 - Can Bell’s palsy lead to nonflaccid facial palsy in Lyme disease?. “Nonflaccid facial paralysis is a spectrum of hypokinetic and hyperkinetic movement,” wrote Markey and colleagues in the journal Otolaryngology.¹ Hypokinetic movement involves less movement, while hyperkinetic movement involves more movement. “Clinically, this manifests as contraction of the orbicularis oris muscle simultaneous with eye closure […] Read More |
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Chronic neurological Lyme disease or co-morbid conditions? 05/18/2020 - The study, “Patient-reported outcome after treatment for definite Lyme neuroborreliosis” by Eikeland and colleagues, describes 258 patients treated for definite Neurologic Lyme disease. Many of them with chronic neurological lyme disease remained symptomatic an average of 5 years after their initial treatment. According to the authors, a higher proportion of their chronic neurological Lyme disease […] Read More |
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Lyme carditis symptoms may go undiagnosed in Mexico 05/15/2020 - The authors highlight the case of a 23-year-old woman who presented to their hospital “with a chief complaint of dyspnea and chest pain and was found to have a third degree AV-block on the electrocardiogram (ECG)” in their discussion of Lyme carditis symptoms. A temporary pacemaker was implanted. And after an exhaustive work-up for other […] Read More |
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Can’t trust single-dose doxycycline to prevent Lyme disease. Perspective: 05/14/2020 - I can’t trust single-dose doxycycline to prevent Lyme disease. A perspective: A single 200 mg dose of doxycycline administered orally was reported to have been successfully used to prevent the development of erythema migrans at the bite site of Ixodes scapularis ticks,” writes Wormser in an article entitled “Doxycycline for Prevention of Spirochetal Infections-Status Report.” […] Read More |
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How do ticks move when seeking a meal? 05/07/2020 - Understanding how ticks move is important in developing ways to minimize our risk of tick bites and infection. As the authors point out, “less is known about the distances adult ticks are willing and able to travel in the short term and when a host is in close proximity.” The study looked at how adult […] Read More |
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Man with Lyme disease and stroke. An Inside Lyme podcast. 05/03/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. I will be discussing an 83-year-old-man with Lyme disease and stroke in this Inside Lyme podcast. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Legast and her colleague first discussed this case in the journal Neurological […] Read More |
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A confused woman with Anaplasmosis and Babesia infection 04/30/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. I will be discussing a 78-year-old confused woman with an Anaplasmosis and Babesia infection. By Dr. Daniel Cameron A 78-year-old woman was evaluated in an emergency room with fever, chills, lethargy, […] Read More |
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Treatment varies for Bell’s palsy in children with Lyme disease 04/30/2020 - The retrospective review included 93 children with idiopathic Bell’s palsy to the University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust from 2010 to 2017. Idiopathic facial nerve palsy, formerly called Bell’s palsy, is seen in early Lyme disease. Very few children in the study with Bell’s palsy reported a tick bite or rash. In fact, only 14% […] Read More |
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Drive-thru pharmacy for Lyme disease treatment with doxycycline? 04/26/2020 - The clinic’s program to over Lyme disease treatment and its effectiveness are described in a recent article by Portman, “Implementing a pharmacist-run Lyme disease postexposure prophylaxis clinic augmented by academic detailing within the Veterans Health Administration.”¹ In April 2018, VA Butler Healthcare in Pennsylvania opened a pharmacist-run Lyme disease PEP clinic, known as PharmLD clinic. […] Read More |
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Lyme disease can lead to long-term sequelae 04/22/2020 - The Canadian authors point out that in their country alone the number of Lyme disease cases has increased 14-fold over an 8 year period (2009-2017). They reviewed studies published between 1994 and 2019 to assess the extent of long-term sequelae due to Lyme disease. Based on eligibility criteria, 21 studies were included in the analysis, […] Read More |
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Lyme disease case definition misused. Perspective. 04/19/2020 - “Many physicians will mistakenly defer to the CDC’s Lyme disease case definition in making a diagnosis. These clinicians require that patients meet this strict and narrow criteria in order to be diagnosed with the disease.” [2] “However, this definition was designed as a surveillance monitoring tool to track the number of Lyme disease cases throughout […] Read More |
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Lyme disease and double vision 04/15/2020 - I will be discussing a 69-year-old man with Lyme disease and double vision. In this case, the man developed Lyme disease and double vision from 3rd nerve palsy rather than the more common 7th nerve palsy. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Dixit and colleagues first discussed this case in the journal Case Reports in Neurological Medicine […] Read More |
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Looking for a Lyme doctor? 04/14/2020 - It can be difficult to find a Lyme doctor who treats patients who do not live in an endemic area or have a history of a tick bite. It can also be difficult to find a doctor when a person presents with non-specific manifestations of Lyme disease, which may include: Neuropsychiatric Lyme disease [1] Pediatric […] Read More |
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Chinese man with a negative Lyme disease test. An inside Lyme Podcast. 04/12/2020 - I will be discussing a 75-year-old Chinese man with a negative Lyme disease test. How often have doctors dismissed Lyme disease if the screening tests are negative? By Dr. Daniel Cameron Lamichhane and colleagues first discussed this case in the journal Case Reports in Infectious Diseases in 2018. A 75-year-old Chinese man was evaluated in […] Read More |
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A boy with severe cardiac Lyme disease. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 04/10/2020 - I will be discussing a 15-year-old boy with severe cardiac Lyme disease in this Inside Lyme podcast. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Nawrocki and his colleague first discussed this case in the Air Medical Journal in 2018. A 15-year-old boy experienced an episode of exertional syncope while at a trampoline park. Syncope is a temporary loss […] Read More |
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What is “chronic Lyme disease”? 04/10/2020 - Shor and colleagues identified a broad range of symptoms, signs, and conditions present in acute and chronic Lyme disease patients regardless of whether or not they received treatment.All of the cases referenced by the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) working group had been diagnosed with Lyme disease based upon direct laboratory evidence of […] Read More |
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4 children infected with Lyme disease in the south from one camp 04/02/2020 - The number of tick-borne diseases, including Lyme disease, has been steadily rising in the South as tick populations expand into new territories. One study reports, “The trends in these data paint a clear picture of southward expansion of Lyme disease.” As a result, communities once considered non-endemic for Lyme disease will be at risk, including […] Read More |
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Woman with Lyme disease and vision problems. An Inside Lyme Podcast 04/02/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. I will be discussing a 46-year-old woman with Lyme disease and vision problems. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Jha and her colleague first discussed this case in the Wisconsin Medical Journal in 2018. […] Read More |
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Causes of long term Lyme disease symptoms 03/28/2020 - Long term lyme disease symptoms are all to common. According to one study, at their six-month follow-up visit, “36% of patients reported new-onset fatigue, 20% widespread pain, and 45% neurocognitive difficulties.” [3] So, how could Lyme disease symptoms persist long term? There have been many theories, including recent findings that suggest persistent symptoms may be […] Read More |
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Breast cancer and Lyme disease: one woman’s message 03/25/2020 - The woman, a mother to three boys, initially assumed a lump in her breast was due to Lyme disease. “Before I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I thought a lump I had found was part of my Lyme disease. I thought, ‘Okay, let me just watch this and see if it goes away over the […] Read More |
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Risks of COVID-19 from patients. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/24/2020 - Welcome to my next Inside Lyme podcast. – Forty health care workers and 17 patients were presumed to have been infected with COVID-19 in a Chinese hospital. I will be discussing the risk of COVID-19 from patient to health care worker and patient-to-patient transmission. By Dr. Daniel Cameron You may be wondering why I am […] Read More |
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Fecal transmission of COVID-19 in children? An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/22/2020 - Welcome to my next Inside Lyme podcast. – I will be discussing the risk of fecal transmission of COVID-19 in children. You may be wondering why I am discussing COVID-19 during an Inside Lyme podcast. I am concerned for my children, grandchildren, and my patients. I would like to share my understanding of COVID-19 through […] Read More |
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Lack of knowledge about Lyme disease in Canada 03/22/2020 - Researchers surveyed 137 participants from 11 professional and recreational organizations across New Brunswick between December 2018 and February 2019 to better understand Lyme disease in canada. Thirty-six percent of the participants spent time outdoors for their occupation and 64% for recreational activities. Only one of the participants had been previously diagnosed with Lyme disease in […] Read More |
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What is the risk for children with COVID-19? An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/19/2020 - I will be discussing the risk for children with COVID-19 disease based on a recent paper by Dong and colleagues. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Dong and colleague first discussed this case in the journal Pediatrics in 2020. Welcome to my next Inside Lyme podcast. – This episode discusses the risk for children with Coronavirus COVID-19. […] Read More |
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Babesia treatment of two travelers. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/18/2020 - I will be discussing the Babesia treatment of two USA travelers after returning to South Korea. These cases are being discussed during my Inside Lyme podcast series. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Kwon and her colleague describe the cases of two women, who contracted Lyme disease co-infections while visiting the United States. The cases are discussed […] Read More |
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What is a Lyme literate doctor? 03/18/2020 - In the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) guidelines, Wormser and colleagues initially dismissed Lyme disease symptoms as nothing more than the aches and pains of daily living.[2] A Lyme literate doctor would disagree. That conclusion, however, has been undermined by findings from clinical trials, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which report […] Read More |
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Babesia infections explode in Hudson Valley, NY 03/15/2020 - In their article “Increasing incidence and changing epidemiology of babesiosis in the Hudson Valley region of New York State: 2009-2016,” ¹ Joseph and colleagues question how cases of Babesia infections are spreading given that the animal reservoirs mice, shrews, and voles typically do not travel large distances. Cases of Babesia have been reported in two counties […] Read More |
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Removal of an engorged tick anchored to an eyelid. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/15/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. I will be discussing how to remove an engorged tick in an eyelid. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Jaroudi and colleagues first discussed this case in the journal Case Reports in Ophthalmology […] Read More |
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Two mothers transmit Babesia to their babies. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/11/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. I will be discussing two mothers who transmitted Babesia to their babies. By Dr. Daniel Cameron Saetre and colleagues first described these cases in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Disease […] Read More |
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Post Treatment Lyme disease syndrome (PTLDS) cases: An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/07/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. I will discuss four Lyme disease patients that developed Post Treatment Lyme disease syndrome (PTLDS). By Dr. Daniel Cameron Wormser and colleagues first described these four cases in the journal Diagnostic Microbiology […] Read More |
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Are antibiotics used to treat Lyme disease effective? 03/06/2020 - An article entitled “Antibiotic treatment in patients that present with solely non-specific symptoms and positive serology at a Lyme centre,” published in the European Journal of Internal Medicine, ¹ describes a study which addresses the question: Are short-term antibiotics used to treat Lyme disease effective in patients whose symptoms are subjective? The study examined 97 patients […] Read More |
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Lyme disease forces 24-year-old army officer out of the military. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/04/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. I will be discussing a 24-year-old army officer who was forced out of the military due to Lyme disease. By Dr. Daniel Cameron We often think of Lyme disease as a […] Read More |
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ALDF article fails to mention flaws in Lyme disease trials 03/03/2020 - Dr. Baker, director of the American Lyme Disease Foundation, who was responsible for overseeing The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases’ (NIAID) Lyme disease program, wrote in his article, “The results of 5 placebo-controlled clinical trials on the efficacy of extended antibiotic therapy for the treatment of post-Lyme disease symptoms provided no evidence of […] Read More |
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Baby boy with Babesia. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 03/01/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. In this case study, I will be discussing a 6-week old baby boy with Babesia. This case series will be discussed on my Facebook and made available on podcast and YouTube. […] Read More |
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Is suppressing immunity harmful to Lyme disease patients? 02/29/2020 - The authors compared 16 individuals with Lyme disease receiving TNF-α inhibitors with 32 healthy controls to understand whether suppressing their immunity is harmful. The individuals had confirmed Lyme disease with an erythema migrans rash manifestation. The patients received immune-suppressing medications, which included adalimumab, infliximab, etanercept, golimumab. These were often combined with other immunosuppressant drugs for […] Read More |
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Symptoms of Lyme disease are not “excessive” 02/25/2020 - Clinicians face great challenges in diagnosing disorders that involve symptoms seen in both general medicine and psychiatry, ” wrote Robert Bransfield, MD, a psychiatrist and professor at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. All too often, these patients are labeled as having “excessive” symptoms and given outdated diagnoses (i.e. psychosomatic disorder). Symptoms of Lyme disease […] Read More |
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Tick bite with Lyme disease, Babesia, and Anaplasmosis. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 02/24/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. In this case study, I will be discussing a 74-year-old woman with a tick bite with Lyme disease, Babesia, and Anaplasmosis. This case series will be discussed on my Facebook and […] Read More |
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Is Lyme disease being overlooked during infectious disease consultations? 02/20/2020 - In their article “Functional signs in patients consulting for presumed Lyme borreliosis,” Voitey et al. [1] found that in the 48 patients diagnosed with Lyme disease, the most common functional symptoms were arthralgia (23%), neuropathic pain (23%) and asthenia (17%). Asthenia is characterized by abnormal physical weakness or lack of energy. Their result raise concerns whether […] Read More |
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Baby girl with Lyme disease. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 02/19/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. In this case study, I will be discussing a 5-week old baby girl with Lyme disease. This case series will be discussed on my Facebook and made available on podcast and […] Read More |
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Young man dies from Lyme carditis. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 02/16/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. In this case study, I will be discussing a 17-year-old young man who died of Lyme carditis. This case series will be discussed on my Facebook and made available on podcast […] Read More |
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What percentage of ticks have Lyme disease? 02/15/2020 - As the authors point out, “Concurrent polymicrobial infections in humans can have a synergistic effect and result in a more severe course of illness.” In an effort to investigate what percentage of ticks have Lyme disease, the researchers examined three tick species, including the deer tick (Ixodes scapularis), found in Suffolk County, Long Island. Their […] Read More |
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Which Lyme disease guidelines should you follow for Lyme Carditis? 02/11/2020 - In their article Lyme Carditis: A Rare Presentation of Sinus Bradycardia Without Any Conduction Defects, Grella and colleagues present “a unique case of Lyme carditis, without the classical findings of Lyme disease [such as a rash] or common EKG findings of AV conduction abnormalities.”¹ The case highlights the differences in Lyme disease guidelines. A 56–year-old […] Read More |
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Babies contracted Babesia, a Lyme disease co-infection, during pregnancy.. An Inside Lyme Podcast. 02/07/2020 - Welcome to an Inside Lyme case study. I find that the best way to get to know Lyme disease is through reviewing actual cases. In this case study, I will be discussing two babies who contacted Babesia from their mothers. This case affords a discussion Lyme disease during pregnancy.This case series will be discussed on […] Read More |
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Psychiatric lyme disease 02/06/2020 - In their article, Bransfield et al. describe two patients with complex, multisystemic illnesses, which included Lyme disease. Both patients suffered from debilitating symptoms over several years, leaving them unable to walk and confined to a wheelchair. Doctors dismissed their complaints, which ranged from fatigue and weight loss to seizures and cognitive impairments. They were labeled […] Read More |
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Conversion disorder, Guillain-Barré syndrome or neurologic Lyme disease? 02/02/2020 - Teodoro and colleagues describe the case of a woman who was initially suspected of having a conversion disorder but later diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, possibly triggered by neurologic Lyme disease. ¹ (Conversion disorder is a mental condition in which a person has blindness, paralysis, or other nervous system (neurologic) symptoms that cannot be explained by […] Read More |
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Lyme disease in England 01/30/2020 - The people who did seem to suffer from chronic symptoms were those with neurologic problems. “Those that have confirmed neurological Lyme disease in England- a late complication present in about one in 10 cases – have a higher rate of long term subjective symptoms, such as fatigue and poor concentration,” writes Harvey. Matthew Dryden, consultant […] Read More |
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A severe Babesia infection 01/26/2020 - Although the majority of Babesia cases are treated with antimicrobial agents, patients with severe cases may require an exchange transfusion (ET). In their article, “Repeat exchange transfusion for treatment of severe babesiosis,” Radcliffe and colleagues describe the case of a 73-year-old woman with an extreme case of a Babesia infection, who was immunocompromised. [3] The woman ultimately […] Read More |
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Is prolonged antibiotics treatment for Lyme disease the new norm? 01/23/2020 - According to an annual, cross-sectional, nationwide survey, 20.3% were treated for 5 to 8 weeks, while 35.6% were treated for more than 8 weeks. The CDC authors were surprised at the number of Lyme disease (LD) cases being treatment with long term antibiotics “A surprisingly large proportion of respondents reported receiving more than 8 weeks […] Read More |
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Tick-borne encephalitis and Lyme disease can lead to chronic illness 01/15/2020 - In an effort to better understand the role of the immune responses in the clinical course and post-treatment outcome of tick-borne encephalitis (TBE), Bogovič and colleagues “assessed 24 cytokines and chemokines associated with innate and adaptive (T and B cell) immune responses.” A black-legged (Ixodes spp) tick can transmit tick-borne encephalitis and Lyme disease. The […] Read More |
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Fatal case of Neuroborreliosis 01/12/2020 - Neuroborreliosis manifestations typically include headaches and symptoms of meningitis, encephalopathy and stroke-like symptoms. The diagnosis is based on clinical symptoms and lumbar puncture findings. The woman had other serious health problems, which included lupus, a left-posterior parietal ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt due to congenital hydrocephalus, and migraine headaches, explains Khan. Diagnostic tests revealed renal failure and […] Read More |
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Lyme carditis diagnosis – 18 cases. 01/09/2020 - “[Lyme carditis] is caused by direct invasion of myocardial tissue by spirochetes and an immunological host response causing lymphocyte inflammation,” writes Marcos¹ in a discussion of Lyme carditis diagnosis. Furthermore, “B. burgdorferi has a predisposition to cause inflammation of the atrioventricular (AV) node resulting in variable conduction abnormalities.” The 18 patients with possible Lyme carditis were […] Read More |
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Looking for Lyme disease news? Top 10 for 2019. 01/06/2020 - Looking for a Lyme disease news? Here are the top 10 Lyme disease news items for 2019 for www.DanielCameronMD.com. 1) A growing number of doctors are treating Lyme disease for longer than 21 days.Tseng and colleagues described 488 physicians who treated for more than five weeks in a review of insurance claims data in the […] Read More |
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Lyme disease myths lead to frustrations for doctors 01/02/2020 - Doctors have also shared their frustration in a survey taken by Dr. Lynora Saxinger, an infectious disease specialist and associate professor at the University of Alberta’s medical school. Lyme disease myths may lead to frustrations for doctors. The survey reported that “30% [of doctors] said they have been pressured to give antibiotics and almost 90% […] Read More |
Blog Posts – 2019
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Top 10 Lyme disease blogs for 2019! 12/30/2019 - Following is a list of the top blogs on Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses for 2019 according to our readers. (Please click on the headline to read the complete Lyme disease blogs.) 1.) First report of Lyme disease causing mitral valve endocarditis There have been multiple reports documenting cardiac manifestations of Lyme disease, including […] Read More |
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Killing ticks through controlled burns 12/27/2019 - In the short run, we can kill ticks, explains Hodo and colleagues. “Controlled burns may affect tick populations, pathogen prevalence, and risk of pathogen exposure to humans and animals and therefore may be a useful tool in integrated tick management.” wrote Hodo in an article addressing killing ticks. “We found a marked difference in density […] Read More |
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Patients can die when Lyme carditis is not treated 12/20/2019 - Lyme disease can lead to acute and chronic illness. But deaths from Lyme disease can occur. “Death can occur when Lyme carditis is untreated,” wrote Marx, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in the Annuals of Internal Medicine. “Before this report, only 9 fatal cases were reported in the literature.” Case 1: […] Read More |
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Bannwarth syndrome and weight loss – an atypical case 12/11/2019 - Bannwarth syndrome is typically seen in Europe. However, in 2017 doctors from Mayo Clinic described 5 patients with the disease living in Minnesota and Wisconsin. All of the patients presented with peripheral neuropathy. Now, a 2019 case report by Diaz ¹ describes a 60-year-old man from the United States with a variant Bannwarth syndrome. The man […] Read More |
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Treatment guidelines for Lyme disease strike out. An editorial. 12/08/2019 - There is growing evidence supporting the existence and severity of chronic manifestations of Lyme disease despite recent treatment guidelines for Lyme disease. Studies have found that at least 1 in 3 patients treated for Lyme disease remained ill years after treatment. Furthermore, 4 clinical trials sponsored by the National Institutes of Medicine (NIH) documented the […] Read More |
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Study identifies189 children with Lyme carditis 12/05/2019 - In their article addressing the heart and Lyme disease “Increasing Burden of Lyme Carditis in United States Children’s Hospitals,” Beach et al.¹ reveal the rise in Lyme carditis cases throughout the U.S. The largest increases, they write, were found in the Midwest, including the Ohio valley. According to the authors, the children with Lyme carditis […] Read More |
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Brain MRI in Lyme disease 12/02/2019 - The authors review the role of medical imaging for various infectious diseases including the Zika virus, measles, influenza, Chagas disease, syphilis, and Lyme disease. The authors include a discussion of a brain MRI in Lyme disease. Although it is uncommon, Lyme disease patients have presented with positive radiologic findings, writes Alves Simão. Test results, however, […] Read More |
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C6 peptide test may indicate Borrelia miyamotoi infection 11/28/2019 - Koetsveld and colleagues examined C6 reactivity in sera from both mice infected with Borrelia miyamotoi and from 46 patients with PCR-positive Borrelia miyamotoi disease (BMD). Their results support the use of the C6 peptide test used for for Lyme disease as an indication of borrelia miyamotoi test They found, “Cross-reactivity against the C6-peptide was confirmed […] Read More |
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Treatment of Lyme arthritis with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) 11/23/2019 - Antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) are intended to slow down disease progression. Synthetic DMARDs include methotrexate and sulfasalazine. Biological DMARDs include the tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), blockers infliximab (Remicade®), interleukin 1 blockers anakinra (Kineret®), and monoclonal antibodies against B cells (such as rituximab) and the T cell costimulation blocker abatacept (ORENCIA®). The article addressed the factors […] Read More |
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Could advanced imaging reveal cognitive impairment in the brain of a Lyme disease patients? 11/19/2019 - Multiple studies indicate that neurotransmitter levels can be “related to measures of behavioral outcomes, such as memory, reaction timing,” writes Oeltzschner in the journal Neurobiology of Aging. “These relationships can be region-specific.” Their results might lead to new insights to the brain of Lyme disease patients. Measuring these levels, he adds, “could be a promising […] Read More |
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Consequences of antibiotic stewardship for Lyme disease patients. An opinion. 11/16/2019 - Patients who did not receive antibiotics or who had delayed antibiotic treatment had approximately twice as many hospital admissions than patients who had been prescribed antibiotics as soon as symptoms appeared. This paper offers insight into the risk of antibiotic stewardship for Lyme disease. According to their study, more than 13% of the patients did […] Read More |
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My child has Lyme disease. Parents describe fear and frustration. 11/12/2019 - In fact, one study found that in Ontario, Canada adolescents ages 15 to 19 comprised the group of patients most frequently hospitalized for Lyme disease.¹ And the number of cases is expected to escalate. “Increasing numbers of Canadians, including children and adolescents, are being infected with Borrelia burgdorferi and contracting Lyme disease,” writes Gaudet and […] Read More |
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How many patients do not meet the CDC criteria for Lyme disease? 11/07/2019 - Kobayashi and colleagues concluded that nearly 3 out of 4 patients referred to the clinic did not have Lyme disease using the CDC criteria for Lyme disease. They did not interview the referring doctor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Instead, they conducted a chart review. However, to be included in the study, patients […] Read More |
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Hispanic risk of Lyme disease. 11/01/2019 - In their article, “Knowledge and prevention of tick-borne diseases among Hispanic and non-Hispanic residents of Maryland and Virginia,” Hu and colleagues examined U.S. Lyme disease (LD) surveillance data and found that “Hispanics were more likely to have disseminated LD compared with non-Hispanics.” The paper address the Hispanic risk of Lyme disease. The authors summarized several […] Read More |
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Lyme vaccine for humans. The race for a new vaccine. 10/27/2019 - LYMErix was withdrawn from the market in 2002 after concerns over its safety. Since then, there has been growing speculation as to whether researchers will ever be able to develop an effective and safe Lyme disease vaccine for humans. The stakes are high in the race for a new Lyme disease vaccine of humans. “There […] Read More |
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Babesia duncani emerges in Eastern U.S. and may go undetected 10/21/2019 - New research indicates, however, there may no longer be a division of babesial strains between the East Coast and the West Coast. In their article “Babesia microti – Borrelia burgdorferi Co-infection,” Parveen reports that B. duncani has now been identified in eastern USA and Canada.¹ “Since B. duncani is widespread in Canada, its southern spread […] Read More |
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Tick prevention for humans vary between socio-economic levels 10/17/2019 - As part of a TickNET collaboration, researchers examined the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to tick-borne disease prevention among persons living in endemic areas of Connecticut and Maryland.¹ They found that out of the nearly 2,000 people surveyed, performing tick checks for humans and applying tick control to pets were the two most common tick […] Read More |
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How to treat Babesia – a review of 38 cases at the Mayo clinic. 10/13/2019 - The authors found that nearly 50% of patients did not recall a tick bite and had a delay in diagnosis due to the broad range of symptoms. The average age was 63. None of the patients died. Malaise was the most common symptom (84%) reported, followed by fever (71%), chills (52%) and joint pain (32%). […] Read More |
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Chronic post-concussion syndrome symptoms due to Lyme disease 10/03/2019 - Researchers at the Azzolino Clinic in San Francisco, California “identified an alarming number of individuals suffering from post-concussion syndrome (PCS), that are refractory to care and that have serologically tested positive for Lyme disease.” [1] “Furthermore, we have witnessed a dramatic improvement in function and reduction in disability following treatment of these patients,” writes Azzolino […] Read More |
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Impact of environmental changes on tick-borne diseases in Canada 09/26/2019 - Scientists have documented a number of climate changes occurring in Canada, such as rising temperatures, changes in rainfall patterns and extreme weather events (i.e. extreme heat and rainfall). They believe, however, that the greatest environmental threat impacting TBDs has been global warming and the increase in temperatures. Canada has already witnessed a growing number of […] Read More |
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Military dependent child contracts Lyme disease abroad? 09/20/2019 - Lyme disease is known to be endemic to Japan, but is rarely diagnosed. Between 2006 and 2010, only 41 cases of Lyme disease were reported, according to the authors. “Forty-one cases were domestic cases with 19 suspected to have been acquired in Hokkaido, 5 cases in Nagano, and 2 cases each in Kanagawa, Niigata, Gifu, […] Read More |
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Reasons for patients not disclosing Lyme disease to their doctor? 09/15/2019 - The results of a survey by Levy et al. offer some possible answers. The authors looked at patients who had suffered at least 1 of 4 imminent threats including depression, suicidality, abuse, and sexual assault. They found “that many people withhold information from their clinicians about imminent health threats that they face,” writes Levy. [1] The […] Read More |
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Clinical judgment leads to successful Lyme disease treatment in young child 09/09/2019 - A 6-year-old child presented to her pediatrician with a circular rash on the left side of her face. The pediatrician initially assumed the rash was allergic dermatitis and prescribed topical steroids. But the rash did not improve, explains Banadyha and colleagues in their case report. Over the next 1½ months the rash spread to the […] Read More |
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Persistent Lyme infection or inflammatory immune response? 09/05/2019 - The PG(Bb) fragments likely “contribute to inflammation during infection and in cases of post-infectious Lyme arthritis.” In a mouse study, the authors found “that PG(Bb) alone was sufficient to induce acute arthritis.” Furthermore, Jutras and colleagues suggest that “immune responses to PG(Bb) and autoantigens may contribute to pathology, even after the infection itself has been cleared.” […] Read More |
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Stopping the malaria epidemic: lessons for Lyme disease? 09/01/2019 - While there are many differences between these vectors and the diseases they transmit, the authors seek to answer the question: Why did malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases elicit effective interventions while Lyme and the other tick-borne diseases have not? Lyme disease is “one of the most challenging contemporary public health problems,” writes Rochlin. And while […] Read More |
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Ticks: transmitting multiple infectious agents 08/28/2019 - “Besides the rise in the number of cases of Lyme disease, caused by genospecies of the Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. complex, important tick-borne diseases also include anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Powassan virus, and babesiosis,” writes Benelli. [1] Ticks can also be frustrating if your child, livestock, or pet becomes infected. Have you found ticks […] Read More |
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Dismissing chronic Lyme disease for somatic symptom disorder diagnosis 08/28/2019 - Peri and colleagues reviewed the medical records of children admitted to a hospital in Italy between January 2016 and December 2018. They identified 26 children who had a diagnosis of Lyme disease. Seven fit the criteria for chronic Lyme disease. But the authors disputed these findings, suspecting instead that the patients suffered from a somatic […] Read More |
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Recognizing knee pain associated with Lyme disease 08/26/2019 - Dr. Miller often treats empirically. “Because early treatment of Lyme disease decreases the chance of chronic symptoms, we often treat empirically with doxycycline while awaiting results of antibody testing. Travelers to high-risk areas may return home and develop symptoms weeks later.” Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31259503 Related Articles: Will steroid injections help children with Lyme arthritis of the knee? […] Read More |
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What exactly is POTS – postural tachycardia syndrome? 08/21/2019 - The cause of POTS is not well understood but researchers believe it is due to multiple factors. According to Wells and colleagues, “moderate autonomic dysfunction, increased sympathetic tone, severe deconditioning, inadequate venous return or excessive blood venous pooling may contribute to POTS symptoms.” In addition, “Autoimmunity and mast cell activation syndromes have been postulated as […] Read More |
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Number of post-treatment Lyme disease cases expected to soar 08/18/2019 - For a significant number of patients with Lyme disease, standard antibiotic treatment does not work. In fact, recent studies [1-3] have shown that treatment failure rates may range between 10% and 20%, writes DeLong and colleagues. [4] These patients can continue to suffer for years with debilitating symptoms, including pain, fatigue, cognitive dysfunction, and other […] Read More |
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Lyme carditis presenting as atrial fibrillation treated successfully 08/11/2019 - A case study published in the British Medical Journal features a 23-year-old man with a history of degenerative joint disease who presented with a sudden onset of palpitations. [2] His echocardiogram (ECG) revealed atrial fibrillation (AF) with a mildly dilated left Atrium. The patient did not recall a tick bite or a rash. And, “Although […] Read More |
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Human bite leads to discovery of Asian longhorned ticks in New York 08/06/2019 - The tick species continues to spread, however, in the U.S. It was first identified on sheep in New Jersey in 2017. Since then, it has spread to 11 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). These include Arkansas, Connecticut, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, West Virginia, Virginia and […] Read More |
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Study explores the risk of tick bites among German military personnel 07/31/2019 - The authors examined the incidence of tick bites among military personnel specifically occurring during field training and the rate of complications resulting from the bite. They found that “One out of 17.5 recruits suffered a tick bite during basic training.” [1] “It turns out that there is a rather low but relevant risk of being […] Read More |
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Neurological damage/dysfunction found in early Lyme disease patients 07/23/2019 - The authors conducted a study to determine whether a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) could identify neurologic damage in early Lyme disease patients when an MRI failed to do so. Garkowski and colleagues hypothesized that an MRS could assess neurologic changes in Lyme disease patients by measuring alterations in cerebral metabolism. [1] The study included […] Read More |
| Growing list of cardiac problems in Lyme disease 07/18/2019 - In their article “First case report of inducible heart block in Lyme disease and an update of Lyme carditis” by Kannangara and colleagues. This is the first case report of an inducible heart block in Lyme disease. The young man initially presented to the emergency department with syncope. “ECG showed sinus bradycardia with first degree […] Read More |
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Infected deer ticks moving into New York City 07/15/2019 - There has been an “unprecedented increase in locally acquired cases in New York City,” writes VanAcker in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases. [2] In response, VanAcker and colleagues launched a study to determine tick densities and B. burgdorferi infection prevalence in nymphal deer ticks (I. scapularis) in New York City’s public parks. They also examined […] Read More |
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Getting the diagnosis correct and avoiding ‘anchor bias’ 07/11/2019 - Conversely, anchor bias might also occur if a doctor considers only the initial information and incorrectly diagnoses Lyme disease and misses the true diagnosis. Aguirre and colleagues describe this scenario in their paper Anchoring Bias, Lyme Disease, and the Diagnosis Conundrum. [1] A 29-year-old man living in Florida presented with severe headaches, fever, myalgia, and […] Read More |
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Article outrage: Lyme disease easily treated? 07/01/2019 - The New York Times article, written by Apoorva Mandavilli, the mother of a 9-year-old boy who developed Lyme disease, portrays it as a relatively insignificant disease. It is, as she states, “An easily treated infection with no long-term consequences for children, or even the vast majority of adults.” However, she goes on to cite several […] Read More |
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Should Lyme disease be added to the causes of vocal cord paralysis? 06/24/2019 - (Updated: 6/24/19) In the Prevention article, doctors describe how Lyme disease can impact a person’s vocal cords. “Lyme can affect the nerves that are responsible for controlling the muscles in the vocal cords,” says Amesh A. Adalja, MD, an infectious disease specialist at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “As a result, someone could technically lose their […] Read More |
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What does it take to be a “Lyme literate” doctor? 06/20/2019 - So, what does it take to be “Lyme literate”? Baker argues that “Lyme disease conforms to the same fundamental rules and principles applicable to other infectious diseases.” But he fails to define what it would take for a board certified infectious disease specialist to be “Lyme literate.” I would assume a “Lyme literate” doctor would be able to […] Read More |
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Bourbon virus: flu drug to treat the deadly disease? 06/14/2019 - In 2017, a 58-year-old woman from Missouri, who initially presented with generalized weakness, myalgia, nausea, and a rash, was diagnosed with the virus. She had been exposed to ticks one week earlier. She died after 23 days in the hospital. The virus is so new that relatively little is known about it. Symptoms typically include […] Read More |
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Prevalence of Borrelia infections and Powassan virus in Maine 06/10/2019 - While the Powassan virus is considered rare, it can be dangerous and is fatal in 10% of the cases. In 2013, a Maine woman died from the disease and as of 2017, 10 residents had been infected. An increase in cases of Powassan is particularly alarming, given that there is no medication to treat this […] Read More |
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Relying on a negative Lyme disease test can prove deadly 06/10/2019 - In the summer of 2013, a young man from Poughkeepsie, NY, died suddenly after suffering from flu-like symptoms for nearly 3 weeks. Initial reports suggested he had died from complications due to the Powassan virus, a rare illness, transmitted by ticks that can be fatal. However, a paper published in the March issue of Cardiovascular Pathologist, 3. […] Read More |
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Powassan virus infection causes polio-like illness 06/06/2019 - While vacationing in rural Newfoundland, the man developed nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, double vision (diplopia) and impaired coordination (ataxia). He was admitted to a hospital where his symptoms worsened. The man became febrile and experienced slurred and slow speech (dysarthria), weakness, and respiratory distress. “Cerebrospinal fluid analysis showed pleocytosis (159 × 106 total nucleated cells: […] Read More |
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What blood type do ticks prefer? 06/04/2019 - To explore the possible association, Žákovská and colleagues from Masaryk University in the Czech Republic conducted a pilot study using an in vitro method. Blood from volunteers was placed on the perimeter of filter paper placed on a Petri dish. Researchers collected 100 nymphal Ixodes ricinus ticks in Ruda, near the Brno Reservoir. These are […] Read More |
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The third rail of Lyme disease: how Borrelia bacteria persist 05/28/2019 - The working group, led by Dr. John Aucott of Johns Hopkins Lyme Disease Clinical Research Center, released its first report in 2018. The report included multiple suggestions to address the “serious and growing threat of tick-borne diseases.” Authors of the report called on the government to invest more funds in research, prevention and treatment of […] Read More |
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Yale doctor says children don’t have Lyme, but medically unexplained symptoms 05/24/2019 - In a 2014 interview, Dr. Eugene Shapiro, dismissed patients’ concerns over chronic symptoms associated with Lyme disease And recommended the medical community “figure out ways to reduce healthcare-seeking behaviors” by patients who are ill and told they do not have Lyme disease. Shapiro expressed his concerns after reviewing Yale Medical Center’s patient database and finding […] Read More |
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Lyme disease consultations common in France 05/19/2019 - According to Haddad, more than 1,000 individuals consulted 1 of 3 centers in France about presumed Lyme borreliosis. However, the majority (90%) were not diagnosed with Lyme disease. “The most striking result is that approximately 10% of such patients have a final diagnosis of LB [Lyme borreliosis],” writes Haddad. Yet, in one of the studies […] Read More |
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6 cases of Babesia in early Lyme disease 05/05/2019 - Out of the 52 patients, 4 (7.7%) “had convincing evidence of Babesia microti co-infection,” writes Wormser. These patients, along with 2 additional cases of suspected Babesia, were highlighted in the article. Patient 1: 69-year-old with fever on day 4 of amoxicillin therapy. Positive for B. microti by blood smear and DNA by PCR. Patient 2: […] Read More |
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9 cases of children in France with Lyme neuroborreliosis 05/05/2019 - “The exact prevalence of NB [neuroborreliosis] in France is unknown because reporting is not required,” explains Guet-Revillet. “Nevertheless, the prevalence seems rare.” The outcome for the 9 children “was favorable” after a 2- to 3-week course of third-generation cephalosporin. However, the outcomes have not been so positive for other pediatric cases. According to the authors’ […] Read More |
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Lyme pseudothrombophlebitis in a young child 05/04/2019 - The pain had been ongoing for one week. “He described the pain as throbbing, worse with movement, and improved with rest,” writes Sandelich and colleagues. Three days earlier, the boy had visited a different emergency department and was diagnosed with a muscle sprain following results from an X-ray. The boy’s pain, however, continued, and an ultrasound […] Read More |
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People re-infected with Lyme disease may develop strain-specific immunity 05/02/2019 - “It is common knowledge among veterinarians who practice in LD endemic areas that a significant percentage of dogs will develop repeated LD infections,” writes Khatchikian in the journal Infection and Immunity. [2] “This phenomenon is well-documented in humans,” as well, explains Khatchikian. “In one study, 15% of patients with LD living in a Lyme endemic […] Read More |
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How do Lyme disease vaccines work in dogs? 04/29/2019 - Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne disease affecting humans and dogs. According to the Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC), 319,000 canines tested positive for Lyme disease in 2018. This is up from 160,000 in 2012. In reality, the council says, these numbers are much higher, because data is collected for only 30% of the […] Read More |
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Cats carry all types of ticks and tick-borne diseases 04/22/2019 - Updated: April 22, 2019 In a study by Shannon and colleagues, 160 ticks and blood samples were collected from 70 healthy cats brought to the Mid Atlantic Cat Hospital in Queenstown, Maryland. [1] The authors found that the cats were carrying 3 species of ticks including 83 Lone Star ticks (Amblyomma americanum), 7 American dog ticks (Dermacentor […] Read More |
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The best antibiotics to treat Borrelia miyamotoi? 04/17/2019 - In the United States, as many as 15.4% of the blacklegged ticks were found to be infected with B. miyamotoi, compared with up to 4% in Europe and Japan, according to Koetsveld from the Center for Experimental and Molecular Medicine, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. [1] Meanwhile, “Seroprevalence studies in New England suggest that […] Read More |
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Only a minority of children with Lyme disease recall a tick bite 04/12/2019 - The study looked at 325 children with Lyme disease who were evaluated at six different emergency medicine departments located in Lyme endemic regions. The patients all had an available tick bite history. “Our goal was to report the frequency of a known tick bite in children with Lyme disease overall and by stage,” the authors […] Read More |
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Lyme borreliosis patients not receiving treatment, says infectious disease doctor 04/07/2019 - The study, by Roaldsnes and colleagues, describes 110 patients with muscular and joint pain, fatigue, memory and concentration impairments, who were assessed for possible Lyme neuroborreliosis. These patients had non-specific neurological symptoms. “Only one patient was diagnosed with possible Lyme neuroborreliosis. Altogether 27% had high levels of Borrelia-IgG serum antibodies,” the authors write. Many of […] Read More |
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Lyme disease forces 24-year-old army officer out of military 04/01/2019 - In the case report “Latent Lyme Disease Resulting in Chronic Arthritis and Early Career Termination in a United States Army Officer,” Weiss et al. describe a 24-year-old Second Lieutenant, trained at the U.S. Military Academy, whose career was terminated due to Lyme disease. [1] The young man had unexplained knee swelling after successfully completing hip […] Read More |
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Lyme disease manifests as an autoimmune disorder, Sjögren’s syndrome 03/28/2019 - A 43-year-old woman initially presented to an oncology clinic with symptoms of lymphadenopathy, a disease of the lymph nodes. She complained of low-grade fever, generalized swelling of lymph nodes, migrating aches in joints of arms and legs, dryness in mouth and eyes, weight loss, and fatigue for the past 6 months, writes Smiyan and colleagues. […] Read More |
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Study finds tiny larval ticks can transmit Borrelia miyamotoi 03/25/2019 - Unlike Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, female ticks infected with Borrelia miyamotoi can pass the bacteria to their offspring. “Therefore, in addition to nymphs and adults, larvae can vector B. miyamotoi to wildlife and human hosts,” write the authors of a new study, “Vertical transmission rates of Borrelia miyamotoi in Ixodes scapularis […] Read More |
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Will steroid injections help children with Lyme arthritis of the knee? 03/21/2019 - Premature injection of these steroids “has been reported as a potential risk factor for the development of ARLA [antibiotic-refractory Lyme arthritis] in children and adults,” writes Horton et al. in the Journal of Rheumatology. [1] “This risk is attributed to impairment of the body’s response to infection due to local immune suppression within an infected […] Read More |
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Scientific community discounts Lyme disease patients 03/18/2019 - The authors of a new review soundly dismiss patients’ concerns regarding chronic manifestations of Lyme disease stating, “The infection annual incidence is modest (< 30,000 cases) and is not supposed to be fatal.” [2] In dismissing the possible severity of Lyme disease, Peretti-Watel and colleagues failed to take an evidence-based medicine approach (EBM), which integrates […] Read More |
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Are lone star ticks in your neighborhood? 03/11/2019 - Between 2006 and 2016, researchers received 8,608 ticks from 22 states in the U.S. [1] However, most of the ticks were collected in Monmouth County, New Jersey, where the investigators were located. Monmouth County has long been recognized as endemic for Lyme disease. Researchers found that lone star ticks accounted for nearly half (48.1%) of […] Read More |
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Autonomic dysfunction, small fiber neuropathy and Lyme disease 03/07/2019 - The retrospective study included 10 patients diagnosed with post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome, who had autonomic testing performed between 2016 and 2018 at the Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital Autonomic laboratory. [1] The authors aimed to identify SFN as a possible biomarker of “PTLDS,” in addition to evaluating autonomic dysfunction associated with presumed small fiber neuropathy […] Read More |
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Northern ‘immigrant’ ticks causing concern in the South 03/03/2019 - “While questing, ticks hold onto leaves and grass by their third and fourth pair of legs. They hold the first pair of legs outstretched, waiting to climb onto the host,” according to researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). “When a host brushes the spot where a tick is waiting, it quickly […] Read More |
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Failure rates still too high for treatment of Lyme disease 02/24/2019 - According to the authors, the 14-day course effectively cleared the patients’ erythema migrans rashes and “prevented the development of objective neurologic, cardiac, or rheumatologic manifestations.” One patient was retreated with amoxicillin. Two others could not be evaluated at 1-year follow-up due to a recurrent erythema migrans (EM) rash. But 4 out of the 24 patients […] Read More |
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Lyme-like syndrome in Brazil is still a problem 02/21/2019 - The existence of Borrelia burgdorferi s.s. in Brazil was recently confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing, writes Miziara in the journal Clinics (Sao Paulo). [1] The Amblyomma and Rhipicephalus genera ticks can transmit the bacteria to humans through the bite of an infected tick. In the U.S., Borrelia burgdorferi s.s. is transmitted by Ixodes scapularis […] Read More |
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Acute transverse myelitis in a 25-year-old man with Lyme disease 02/11/2019 - Acute transverse myelitis is a rare neurologic condition that leaves one-third of patients with severe neurologic disability. It is characterized by varying degrees of bilateral motor, sensory, and autonomic dysfunction. Symptoms can progress rapidly within hours or within days, explains Dumic, from Mayo Clinic and lead author of the case report “Acute transverse myelitis: A […] Read More |
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USA veterans suffer from tick-borne illnesses 02/07/2019 - They found that out of 181 patients, 32 presented with an erythema migrans rash. The Lyme disease cases were positive on a C6 peptide and confirmed with a Western blot test. The veterans exhibited: joint pain (58), myalgias and fatigue (34), headache/neck pain (27), peripheral neuropathy (14), seventh nerve palsy (5), and palpitations (2). Several […] Read More |
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Tourists visiting the United States contract Babesia, leaving one dead 02/05/2019 - The first case involved a 50-year-old woman, who was admitted to the hospital in South Korea with a fever, abdominal pain, and nausea. She had visited a forest in New Jersey four weeks earlier and had reportedly developed an erythematous lesion on her lower right calf. Two days later she developed headaches, myalgia, fever and […] Read More |
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Lyme disease manifesting as acute transverse myelitis 01/31/2019 - Clinical signs and symptoms depend on the affected region of the spinal cord, explains Kaiser and colleagues in a recently published case report, “Lyme myelopathy: Case report and literature review of a rare but treatable disorder.” [1] The causes of ATM include “demyelinating processes, infections, autoimmune disorders, malignancies, vascular insults, and nutritional deficiencies,” writes Kaiser. There […] Read More |
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Blood smear not reliable in diagnosing Borrelia miyamotoi disease 01/29/2019 - Some doctors have suggested that a blood smear should be used to confirm the diagnosis of BMD. But as Telford and colleagues demonstrate, a blood smear may not be so reliable. [1] In an effort to determine whether blood smears can detect B. miyamotoi in the blood of acute BMD patients, researchers examined sera from […] Read More |
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Erratic rapid eye jerks in a child with Lyme disease 01/25/2019 - Opsoclonus is typically due to an infectious disease or a form of cancer, known as neuroblastoma. In some cases, the cause is unknown. But the condition is rarely seen in Lyme disease patients, explains Gibaud and colleagues in the case report “Opsoclonus in a child with neuroborreliosis.” [1] In fact, only 2 cases have been […] Read More |
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Don’ t confuse somatic symptoms with depression in early Lyme disease 01/22/2019 - The 1-year prospective study included 52 adult Lyme disease patients with erythema migrans (EM) rashes. Their somatic symptoms included fatigue, headache, joint pain, muscle pain, and cognitive complaints. Individuals with the worst symptoms had the worst BDI-II scores. The BDI-II scale has been used as a screening tool for patients who might benefit from further psychological […] Read More |
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First report of Lyme disease causing mitral valve endocarditis 01/15/2019 - In March 2017, a 68-year-old man was admitted to the Mayo Clinic, in Rochester, Minnesota with symptoms suggestive of heart failure. “He had a chronic cough and progressive dyspnea, which were consistent with New York Heart Association class IV symptoms of heart failure,” writes Fatima. “He also had atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular response.” His […] Read More |
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How the incidence of an EM rash can be inflated 01/10/2019 - Both studies, published in 1996 and 1998, required that the participants meet the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) surveillance case definition for Lyme disease. This definition requires that the erythema migrans rash be at least 2 inches in diameter. But the incidence of an EM rash is lower in studies that are all-inclusive […] Read More |
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A case of Lyme carditis in Mexico 01/07/2019 - The previously healthy woman presented to the emergency room with a sudden-onset of dyspnea and chest pain. She had reported a syncopal episode 4 days prior to being admitted to the hospital. Her EKG revealed a third degree heart block. The woman, who lived in Nuevo Leon, had traveled in the past 4 weeks to […] Read More |
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Elderly Lyme disease patients more likely to have unfavorable treatment outcome 01/04/2019 - The authors reviewed the records of 1,220 young, middle-aged and elderly patients, comparing disease course and long-term outcomes for each group. The patients had been treated at an outpatient clinic at the University Medical Center Ljubljana in Slovenia. The study included 224 elderly patients, with 173 between 65-74 years old, 48 between 75-84 years old […] Read More |
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Are Lyme disease prevention methods really working? 01/01/2019 - In the article “Interventions to prevent Lyme disease in humans: A systematic review,” Richardson writes, “In general the quality of evidence was low. There were typically only 1 to 3 studies and these had mixed results. [1] Following are several personal protective measures promoted to prevent Lyme disease: Tick repellents and protective clothing: “Tick repellents and […] Read More |
Blog Posts – 2018
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Year in Review: Top 10 Lyme disease blogs for 2018 12/27/2018 - Following is a list of the most popular blogs for 2018! 1.) Lyme disease misdiagnosed as shingles in a 62-year-old man Case report: It appeared to be shingles but it was Lyme disease. 2.) More than 50% of mice in Kentucky infected with Lyme bacteria Study finds more than half of the mice in Kentucky […] Read More |
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Lyme disease no longer fits the ‘one microbe, one disease Germ Theory’ 12/20/2018 - But with the emergence of different species of spirochetes and tick-borne co-infections, the one microbe, one disease Germ Theory has fallen apart. The growing number of concurrent tick-borne infections, such as Lyme disease and Babesia, demonstrates the involvement and concern of multiple microbes. One study found that an infection with both Lyme disease and Babesia […] Read More |
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Causes for under-detection of Lyme disease in Canada 12/17/2018 - The authors estimate that the number of Lyme disease cases in Canada that go undetected is greater than the 10-fold difference in the U.S. For example, “Calculation of expected human Lyme disease cases based on tick and canine infections in New Brunswick indicates a minimum of 12.1 to 58.2-fold underestimation (1.7% to 8.3% cases detected).” […] Read More |
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Over 20% of Lyme disease patients remain ill after treatment 12/11/2018 - “Clinically, PTLDS is largely a diagnosis of exclusion, requiring documentation of prior Lyme disease, appropriate treatment, and onset of unexplained, subjective symptoms within six months after a Lyme disease diagnosis that persist for at least six months after completion of antibiotic treatment,” writes Moon from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. [4] Many patients […] Read More |
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Study finds misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis common for Lyme disease patients 12/04/2018 - A study published in Healthcare (Basel) by Johnson and colleagues [1] summarizes information provided by 3,903 individuals registered with MyLymeData. The participants reported a delay in diagnosis. “More than half (51%) reported that it took them more than three years to be diagnosed and roughly the same proportion (54%) saw five or more clinicians before […] Read More |
| Babesia remains a clinical diagnosis for some patients 12/02/2018 - In turn, investigators from ISDH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) examined specimens from 14 of the patients diagnosed with Lyme disease and B. microti. They tested for Babesia infection by Giemsa-stained blood smears, PCR (polymerase chain reaction), and indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) for total immunoglobulin to B. microti. The only clinical […] Read More |
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Lyme disease induces severe cardiac problems in 15-year-old boy 11/30/2018 - Medics found the boy to be pale, with a heart rate of 300 beats per minute and unstable regular wide complex tachyarrhythmia (WCT). He was given a dose of amiodarone but remained in ventricular tachycardia. At the hospital his blood pressure dropped to 66/30 mm Hg and his dizziness and shortness of breath worsened. “After […] Read More |
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Could race affect the diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease? 11/27/2018 - Using data from Geisinger electronic medical records, researchers identified 9657 Lyme disease cases diagnosed between 2006 and 2014 in central and northeastern Pennsylvania. [bctt tweet=”Are African-Americans less likely to be diagnosed with Lyme disease?” username=”DrDanielCameron”] Moon and colleagues found that more than 97% of the Lyme disease patients were white non-Hispanic. Only 0.9% were Hispanic […] Read More |
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Case report: Various clinical presentations of Babesia 11/21/2018 - The woman was admitted to the emergency room with fever, chills, lethargy, fatigue, and marked changes in sensorium. Clinicians initially believed her symptoms were due to sepsis, but she was later diagnosed with concurrent Babesia and anaplasmosis. Her case demonstrates how “patients with babesiosis show a wide range of symptoms and clinical presentations,” writes Paparone. […] Read More |
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Could a blood transfusion transmit Lyme disease? 11/10/2018 - Studies have found Borrelia burgdorferi in the blood of patients with early Lyme disease using culture tests. “Borrelia are likely to be found circulating in the blood sporadically or they may persist for a time period ranging from 2 to 5 weeks and in some cases beyond this time frame,” writes Pavia, citing a 2001 […] Read More |
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How effective is Permethrin-treated clothing in preventing tick bites? 11/09/2018 - Now, a new study by Connally and colleagues examines the effectiveness of treated clothing after it is worn and washed/dried. [2] Does this impact the contact irritancy and toxicity against Ixodes scapularis nymphs? The investigators forced blacklegged ticks to be in contact with Permethrin-treated clothing for 30 to 120 seconds. They then monitored the ticks’ […] Read More |
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Southern nymphal deer ticks in hiding? 11/08/2018 - In their article “Searching for the Immature Stages of Ixodes scapularis in Leaf Litter and Soil in Texas,” Tietjen and colleagues, from Texas A&M University, speculate that nymphal ticks in the south could be in the leaf litter or in different soil layers rather than on the understory vegetation. [1] So, employing a different type […] Read More |
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Lyme disease mimics prosthetic joint infection following knee replacement 11/08/2018 - The 83-year-old man, from Pennsylvania, was admitted to the hospital, reporting pain in his knee, erythema and fever for 3 days. Upon examination, physicians noted he had “a moderate effusion and limited range of motion,” explains Collins. The patient had a total knee replacement, involving the same knee, 6 years earlier. Culture tests were negative […] Read More |
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Delayed onset of Babesia highlights importance of follow-up visits 11/04/2018 - Doctors diagnosed and treated a 67-year-old woman for early Lyme disease with a 21-day course of amoxicillin after she presented with an erythema migrans rash. (The woman was allergic to doxycycline.) Near the end of her treatment, the woman developed fevers (102.92°F), myalgias, dizziness, and fatigue. Due to concerns that she may be septic or have an […] Read More |
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Don’t be misled: patients can have both mono and Lyme disease 10/29/2018 - These conditions are typically thought to occur separately with several published reports describing each illness as mimicking the other. But a new article by Koester and colleagues details the first cases of acute Lyme and EBV infections reportedly occurring concurrently. “We describe the clinical presentation of two children with confirmed early Lyme disease and features […] Read More |
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Infected ticks prevalent in urban areas in the United Kingdom (UK) 10/26/2018 - A recent article, “Assessment of the Public Health Threats Posed by Vector-Borne Disease in the United Kingdom,” by Medlock and colleagues explores the growing concern Lyme disease poses to residents in the UK. [1] “There has been an increase in the numbers of reported human cases of Lyme disease,” writes Medlock in the International Journal […] Read More |
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First-line combination therapy for tick-borne illnesses 10/24/2018 - Typically, doxycycline is the go-to antibiotic for practitioners. It has become the favorite first-line drug for treating tick-borne illnesses. But, it’s not effective for all tick-related diseases such as Babesia. In these instances, a combination of antibiotics and/or anti-viral medications may be required. In a recent article, published in The Nurse Practitioner, Paparone discusses the […] Read More |
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Can we avoid using a pacemaker for Lyme carditis with high-degree AV block? 10/17/2018 - Identifying patients with high-degree AV block caused by Lyme carditis is imperative “to prevent the inherent risks of pacemaker implantation, such as periprocedural infections, lead dislodgement, and erosions,” the author writes. Recognizing these patients is particularly important given that Lyme carditis often impacts younger individuals, who may be at a greater risk of experiencing complications […] Read More |
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10 cases of Heartland virus reviewed 09/24/2018 - So, what do we actually know about this potentially deadly virus? Symptoms are similar to those seen with other tick-borne illnesses. Patients may experience fever, headaches, joint and muscle aches, fatigue, loss of appetite, and diarrhea. Individuals with the virus have reported becoming ill about two weeks after being bitten by a tick. There is […] Read More |
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Lyme disease remains a threat to international travelers to the US 09/19/2018 - “Despite being a top international tourist destination, few sources describe the spectrum of infectious diseases acquired among travellers to the USA,” writes Stoney in the Journal Travel Medicine. [1] Stoney, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and colleagues analyzed travel history and clinical diagnoses for non-US-resident travellers who visited GeoSentinel clinics between […] Read More |
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Citizen scientists help uncover growing risk of Babesia 09/16/2018 - An article by Nieto and colleagues, published in PLoS One, describes a study using citizen science to gather data on human exposure to ticks and tick-borne diseases. The study was conducted on a national scale between January 2016 and August 2017. “This study offers a unique and valuable perspective because it looks at risk to […] Read More |
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Doctors face challenges in diagnosing Borrelia miyamotoi 09/06/2018 - Borrelia miyamotoi, the bacteria which causes relapsing fever, is one of the latest threats. The disease was first reported in the United States in 2013 but has become increasingly more common. B. miyamotoi is carried by black-legged ticks, the same ticks that can transmit Lyme disease. One study found that 2% of nymphal ticks collected in […] Read More |
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Lyme disease causes double vision: case report 09/04/2018 - In their report, the authors describe a 69-year-old man who was admitted to the emergency room in New York City complaining of a headache and double vision. One month earlier, the man had been hiking in a rural area of New York. He did not notice a tick bite or rash. Two weeks later, he […] Read More |
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Move over nymphal ticks, larval deer ticks now pose a threat 08/30/2018 - According to investigators from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), larval ticks can already be infected with Borrelia miyamotoi, after they hatch from the eggs. [1] This occurs through a process called transovarially transmission in which the adult tick transmits the B. miyamotoi bacteria to its offspring by infecting the eggs in its […] Read More |
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7 tick-borne pathogens reported in my home state of Minnesota 08/27/2018 - The authors of a recent study published in Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases examined the pathogens in 1,240 host-seeking Ixodes scapularis (black-legged) nymphal ticks from Minnesota. They identified seven infectious agents including Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto (bacteria causing Lyme disease), Borrelia mayonii, Borrelia miyamotoi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Ehrlichia muris eauclairensis, Babesia microti (protozoan) and Powassan (virus). B. […] Read More |
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Case demonstrates importance of follow-up with Lyme disease patients 08/22/2018 - “We present the case of a 75-year-old, Northeast suburban resident [of New York] complaining of unstable gait, high fevers, malaise, myalgia, and confusion,” writes Lamichhane in the journal Hindawi, Case Reports in Infectious Diseases. [1] The man had not travelled outside the area and only reported taking walks in the local park. He did not […] Read More |
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Doctors warned to be vigilant for Lyme disease in Tennessee 08/18/2018 - In 2015, Lantos and colleagues described cases of Lyme disease occurring in Tennessee. [2] Their study, Geographic Expansion of Lyme Disease in the Southeastern United States, 2000-2014, reported human Lyme disease cases had expanded south, stretching along the eastern foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in nearby Virginia. Lantos also found infected deer ticks 100km away in […] Read More |
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Lyme disease mimics autoimmune disorder in elderly woman 08/15/2018 - The clinical presentation was consistent with DM. “A 76-year-old female presented with fatigue, malaise, weight loss and progressive proximal muscle weakness after a flare-up of shoulder arthritis,” writes Novitch, a medical student at the Medical College of Wisconsin. The physical findings were consistent with DM. “She had a heliotrope rash and a ‘Shawl sign,’ in […] Read More |
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Infectious disease clinician proposes changing the name of Lyme disease 08/12/2018 - In 1977, the disease was initially called “Lyme arthritis,” after a cluster of cases of oligoarticular arthritis in children and adults was reported in the Lyme, Connecticut, area. [2] In 1979, the name was changed to Lyme disease, after additional symptoms were associated with the infection. Then, in 1982 the pathogenic organism was identified as […] Read More |
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When should you worry about ticks in your neighborhood? 08/10/2018 - The study, which took place between June 2012 and May 2014, identified 1375 deer ticks (481 nymphs and 894 adults) along walkways with heavy foot traffic. Interestingly, the adult ticks were collected between April and November, while the majority of nymphs were gathered only in the summer. According to the authors, the overall tick infection […] Read More |
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Lyme disease causes vision loss in 46-year-old woman 08/06/2018 - A recent article published in the Wisconsin Medical Journal describes the case of a 46-year-old woman who experienced a sudden onset of bilateral vision loss and paresthesias. According to Jha and colleagues from the Medical College of Wisconsin, the woman developed blurred vision, which progressively worsened over a 3-week period. [2] This reportedly began after […] Read More |
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Oppositional behavior in children with Lyme disease 08/02/2018 - As Dr. Richard Bransfield explains in Neuropsychiatric Disease Treatment, “Lyme disease and the immune, biochemical, neurotransmitter, and the neural circuit reactions to [Lyme disease] can cause impairments associated with violence.” [1] Children with serologic evidence of a tick-borne illness can also develop severe oppositional defiant behaviors, according to Dr. Rosalie Greenberg, a child and adolescent […] Read More |
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Recommendations dismiss seriousness of Lyme disease in children 07/29/2018 - “Case reports of neuropsychological manifestations of Lyme disease that are of special interest to psychiatrists include: Alice in Wonderland syndrome (sensation that things are getting larger and smaller), Tourette’s syndrome, acute delirium, catatonia, psychosis, and stroke mimics such as aphasia,” writes Koster and Garro in the journal Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics of North America. […] Read More |
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How concerned are people about tick bites and tick-borne diseases? 07/25/2018 - The study found that as many as 43% of the respondents believe tick bites constitute a “large or very large risk to his/her health or the health of his/her family,” writes Slunge and Boman, from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, in the journal PLoS One. [1] Interestingly, this is higher than the perceived health risks […] Read More |
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Long-term problems for some Lyme neuroborreliosis patients 07/19/2018 - The study looked at long-term survival, health, social functioning, and education in patients with European Lyme neuroborreliosis (LNB). The authors found no difference between patients with LNB and the general population in several areas, including: education, divorce and marriage rate, or mortality. Furthermore, although there was a greater number of patients on disability than expected, […] Read More |
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6 reasons for delayed treatment of Lyme disease 07/15/2018 - Patients with recurrent Lyme disease and Lyme encephalopathy have waited an average of 2 years before receiving treatment, [1,2] This delay can have life-long repercussions. Once the Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb) infection disseminates, symptoms can become more problematic and treatment more difficult. There has been limited published information about the reasons for such delays. Now, a […] Read More |
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Lyme disease in children rising in Pennsylvania: an inside look 07/12/2018 - According to the CDC, in 2016, nearly 38% of all Lyme disease cases occurred in Pennsylvania. Other studies report “ticks infected with B. burgdorferi are now detectable in every county in Pennsylvania, with infection rates similar to that of endemic Northeastern states.” Now, a new study examines the impact of Lyme disease among children living […] Read More |
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Impact of Lyme disease on working and caregiving 07/09/2018 - “The impact of Lyme disease on work and caregiving activities emerged as a salient theme for participants, impacting patients prior to treatment and, in some cases, even after treatment,” writes Hirsch and colleagues in the British Medical Journal. [1] The authors identified 26 patients who were diagnosed with Lyme disease between 2014 and 2017 and […] Read More |
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5 things to know about Lyme carditis 06/24/2018 - Lyme carditis occurs when Lyme spirochete enter the tissues of the heart, causing blockage. Symptoms, which may include lightheadedness, fainting, shortness of breath, heart palpitations, or chest pain, can begin as early as one week after a tick bite. A high-degree atrioventricular block can lead to the need for a permanent pacemaker or in some […] Read More |
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Steroids harmful to patients with Bell’s palsy caused by Lyme disease 06/21/2018 - The series by Wormser and colleagues, published in the journal Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease examines the success of treatment after long-term follow-up with eleven patients. [1] All of the patients with LDFP received corticosteroids, in addition to antibiotics. The authors found that 6 of the 11 patients (54.5%) suffered from facial nerve dysfunction an […] Read More |
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Turning a blind eye on Lyme disease 06/17/2018 - “Our ignorance is often unbearable and may lead us to turn a blind eye on non-lesional diseases,” explains Raoult from the Aix-Marseille Université in France. [1] Such ignorance, Raoult says, has at times led scientists to believe that some diseases had a “psychiatric cause while they were somatic and could be easily treated.” One could say […] Read More |
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Will eliminating deer help stop the spread of infected ticks? 06/14/2018 - Over the years, there has been much discussion and debate over whether reducing the deer population would in turn help lower the risk of Lyme disease, particularly in endemic regions. A 2014 study found that reducing the deer population “dramatically reduced I. scapularis abundance and Lyme disease cases on a Connecticut peninsula.” [1] A study […] Read More |
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Unexplained stroke: Look for Lyme disease 06/11/2018 - “We here describe the case of an 83-year-old man for whom we strongly suspect Lyme neuroborreliosis as the etiology of his stroke,” writes Moreno Legast and colleagues in the journal Hindawi Case Reports in Neurological Medicine. [1] The patient was admitted to the emergency room complaining of right-sided weakness and speech difficulties, which had developed […] Read More |
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Preventing unnecessary surgery for children with Lyme arthritis 06/07/2018 - A study in 2003 found that 7 out of 10 children with Lyme disease, who were admitted to an emergency room with an acutely swollen joint, were suspected of having bacterial septic arthritis and underwent surgery, according to Willis. [1] So, can we prevent unnecessary surgery for children with Lyme arthritis? asks Gendelberg from Penn State […] Read More |
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Babesia case in the South Bronx 06/05/2018 - While many of these cases may be due to infections acquired when travelling to regions outside of New York City, it is important for clinicians to consider tick-borne diseases in their differential diagnoses in patients living in urban areas. The importance of this is reflected in a recent case study entitled, “A Walk in the […] Read More |
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Clinicians in foreign countries should consider Lyme disease with symptomatic travellers 05/29/2018 - The patient had been living in New York for the past 10 years and only recently returned to Japan to visit family. “The neurologist initially suspected mild tetanus with lockjaw caused by Clostridium tetani infection, which is relatively common in our area,” writes Seki from the division of Infectious Diseases and Infection Control, Tohoku Medical […] Read More |
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When it looks like a brain tumor, but it is Lyme disease 05/23/2018 - Ezequiel and colleagues report on the case of a 9-year-old boy from Portugal who was diagnosed with pseudotumor cerebri due to Lyme disease. The child “was admitted with daily pulsatile frontotemporal headache, pallor, photophobia and phonophobia, without night awakening, vomiting or visual changes,” writes Ezequiel in the British Medical Journal Case Reports. [1] His neurological […] Read More |
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Five cases of Lyme carditis in Canada: multiple hospital visits to diagnose 05/19/2018 - Lyme carditis with heart block can cause non-specific symptoms and be challenging to diagnose. But, “recognizing this early would curtail the progression of conduction disorders and potentially avoid permanent pacemaker implantation,” states lead author Wan from Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada. The majority of patients (3 out of 5) visited the emergency room multiple times […] Read More |
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Re-infection with different B. burgdorferi strain can cause a super-infection in mice 05/15/2018 - In their research, Bhatia and colleagues found evidence that re-infection with the same strain reduces the infectivity of spirochetes in mice. The infectivity of spirochetes that fed on mice infected with the same strain was dramatically reduced but not eliminated. However, re-infection with a different strain increased the infectivity of the spirochete. When infected with […] Read More |
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Netherlands patients pay a high price for having persistent symptoms associated with Lyme disease 05/13/2018 - The three study groups were all prescribed 2 weeks of intravenous ceftriaxone. Two of the three groups were prescribed an additional 12 weeks of oral antibiotics, either doxycycline or a combination of clarithromycin with hydroxychloroquine. [1] The quality of life (QOL) for Netherlands patients with persistent symptoms associated with Lyme disease was poor before antibiotic […] Read More |
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Lyme endocarditis in 68-year-old avid outdoorsman 05/09/2018 - In their article published in The American Journal of Medicine, Paim and her team describe a 68-year-old male with progressive dyspnea and valve disease. His transesophageal echocardiogram revealed a mitral valve perforation with severe mitral valve insufficiency. The mitral valve was repaired and aortic valve replaced. The patient was prescribed ceftriaxone and azithromycin along with diuretic […] Read More |
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B. burgdorferi, the pathogen that causes Lyme disease is widespread in New York City metro area 05/03/2018 - The majority of Lyme disease cases are believed to occur in the Northeast, with 9.7% of cases reported in New York State, says Herrin, from Oklahoma State University, in the journal Parasites & Vectors. The rate of infected dogs is similar. “In New York State, 7.1% of pet dogs tested are seropositive [for B. burgdorferi],” […] Read More |
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Kentucky is swarming with deer ticks: over 50% of counties infested 04/29/2018 - The authors collected deer ticks from 794 hunter-harvested white-tailed deer and 2 from black bears (killed by cars). An additional 6 ticks were removed from two field biologists assisting with tick collection, which took place between October 2015 and January 2017. “We combined our data (41 new county records) with data from Eisen et al. […] Read More |
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“Hot spots” for blacklegged ticks found in Canada 04/23/2018 - Ticks were collected by veterinary clinics and the general public between 2014 and 2016 and sent to the university as part of a surveillance program. In evaluating the data, the authors identified “hot spots” in northern New Brunswick where I. scapularis ticks had been found on dogs. “Canine infections were generally concentrated in the south-central […] Read More |
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Netherlands study finds Lyme disease common in elderly 04/19/2018 - According to the authors, out of the 1454 patients referred to the center, 255 (17.5%) were 65 years and older, of which 45% were males. The average age was 79, with a range from 65 to 87 years. One-third or 33% had clinical Lyme borreliosis and positive serologic tests, compared with 18% of the younger […] Read More |
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Untreated Lyme disease triggers a stroke in 9-year-old boy 04/16/2018 - “Recent data suggest that infection either directly or indirectly plays a major role in the pathogenesis of childhood acute ischemic stroke,” states Monteventi, from the Pediatric Neurology Unit at Geneva Children’s Hospital in Switzerland. [1] The goal of this study was to “identify all children who suffered from a stroke that can be attributed with […] Read More |
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Healthy people may be unaware they are infected with Babesia 04/12/2018 - The numbers of individuals in the US who are unaware they are infected with Babesia could be significant. At least 300,000 people are diagnosed with Lyme disease every year in the US. And up to 40% of those with Lyme disease in the northeast have been found to also be infected with Babesia. [2] In […] Read More |
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Study finds hearing loss and tinnitus common in patients with tick-borne diseases 04/09/2018 - In Europe, the most common tick-borne diseases are Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis. However, “in recent years the number of infections caused by pathogens from Bartonella, Babesia, Anaplasma, Brucella and other species has also been increasing,” writes Sowula. This study looked at not only the prevalence of otolaryngological symptoms in patients with Lyme disease, but in […] Read More |
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Hundreds of infected ticks found in one yard in Canada 04/03/2018 - Four of the citizen scientists collectively recovered several hundred ticks over a 3-year period starting in 2014. The Saint John, New Brunswick collection process went beyond conventional flagging. “Ticks were obtained by flagging backyard vegetation with a white hand towel, removing ticks from flowers harvested in the backyard, and collecting ticks from the household cat,” […] Read More |
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Poor sleep quality in Lyme disease patients 03/25/2018 - The authors describe the quality of the sleep of Lyme disease (LD) patients who were “ideally treated” for an erythema migrans rash. They defined “ideally treated” as a 3-week course of doxycycline. Their study excluded individuals with more complicated presentations including self-reported history of prior LD, having Lyme symptoms for greater than 3 months duration, […] Read More |
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Most residents in Delaware are not worried about Lyme disease 03/22/2018 - The study, led by Gupta from the Department of Public and Allied Health Sciences at Delaware State University, found that “participants’ knowledge of tick-borne diseases was poor,” with less than half (38.4%) believing ticks were problematic in Delaware. In fact, while more than half of the study’s respondents indicated having seen such prevention campaigns, only […] Read More |
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Dental surgery triggers full body pain in patient with severe post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome 03/07/2018 - “Her functionality was severely affected; she was bedbound for approximately 5 years and required a wheelchair,” writes Lim from the University of California in San Francisco. [1] Her medical history also included fibromyalgia, hypothyroidism, anxiety/depression, and insomnia. Her skin, spine, bones and joint pain was severe and difficult to treat. “She had severe pain episodes […] Read More |
| Study identifies ticks that are most dangerous to humans 03/04/2018 - “Our model predicted vector status with over 91% accuracy,” the authors state, “and identified 14 Ixodes species with high probabilities (80%) of transmitting infections from animal hosts to humans on the basis of their traits.” They found several intrinsic features that predict which tick is more likely to transmit an infection from animals to humans. […] Read More |
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Can Lyme disease trigger obsessive compulsive symptoms? 03/01/2018 - The article published in General Hospital Psychiatry examines the temporal incidence of obsessive compulsive symptoms (OCS) among 147 subjects, ages 18 – 82, with Lyme disease. The study found that 84% of these individuals reported having “clinically significant” OCS. However, only 44% identified themselves as experiencing OCS. Their obsessions and compulsions included washing, checking, ordering, […] Read More |
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More than 50% of mice in Kentucky infected with Lyme bacteria 02/26/2018 - In their study, Buchholz and colleagues, from Western Kentucky University, found that more than half of the mice in Kentucky tested positive for Borrelia burgdorferi. They also discovered that the prevalence of B. burgdorferi was higher in tissue than in blood – a finding consistent with other studies. “Overall prevalence of B. burgdorferi in mammals […] Read More |
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Another cardiac manifestation of Lyme myocarditis 02/05/2018 - A 30-year-old man presented to the ER with “a pulse of 53/min and annular macular rash located over the anterior and posterior aspect of the left chest wall,” writes Cunha. Laboratory evidence confirmed Lyme disease by ELISA and both an IgG and IgM western blot. His ejection fraction was slightly reduced at 50%. The rash […] Read More |
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When Lyme disease mimics a heart attack 02/05/2018 - According to the authors, Lyme disease mimicked a myocardial infarction (heart attack) in a 45-year-old woman who presented with a sudden onset of chest pain, radiating to her neck. The evidence supporting a diagnosis of myocardial infarction was strong. A medical workup showed the woman had EKG changes, high admission levels of Troponin and CK-MB, […] Read More |
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What are the symptoms of Post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome? 02/05/2018 - In their article published in the journal Frontiers in Medicine, the authors state, “Results from the physical exam and laboratory testing our sample of patients with PTLDS did not show a pattern of significant objective abnormalities.” However, “the most notable exception was the higher rate of diminished vibratory sensation on physical exam among participants with […] Read More |
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Post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome is a serious problem 02/05/2018 - According to Rebman and colleagues, writing in the journal Frontiers in Medicine, PTLDS is a severe complication of Lyme disease. [1] The authors identified PTLDS using the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) proposed case definition. [2] “Briefly, this definition relies on prior physician-documented Lyme disease, treatment with standard of care antibiotics, and the development […] Read More |
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6-year-old girl with a rare cutaneous presentation of Lyme disease 02/05/2018 - The 6-year-old girl presented with an erythema migrans (EM) rash before developing an areolar lymphocytoma involving her breast. She had recently travelled to Germany, where her parents recalled her developing an asymptomatic, annular, erythematous eruption of the right flank 1 week after a “bite,” writes Ogimi. The initial tests for Lyme disease were negative. Then, […] Read More |
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Study shows doctors can misdiagnose Lyme disease 02/04/2018 - The study included more than 1,000 children, average age of 9, who underwent evaluation for Lyme disease at 1 of the 5 participating emergency departments. The authors found that 65 out of 554 children (12%) could have been underdiagnosed. “Of the 554 children who the treating clinicians thought were unlikely to have Lyme disease (score […] Read More |
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Single dose of doxycycline for Lyme disease led to poor outcome for 61-year-old man 02/04/2018 - In the January 2018 issue of the British Medical Journal, the authors describe the case of a 61-year-old man who complained to his primary care physician and multiple emergency room personnel that he was having severe shooting pain over his scalp, neck and back. “The degree of discomfort from his hair moving was so extreme […] Read More |
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Ticks and Lyme disease bacteria with us since the Ice Age 02/01/2018 - In an effort to explore the evolutionary history of the spirochete B. burgdorferi in North America, Walter and colleagues from the Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Disease at Yale University collected ticks from across the USA and southern Canada between 1984 and 2013. The authors sequenced what they believe to be the largest collection of 146 […] Read More |
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Lyme patient fails to seek treatment until illness renders him unconscious 01/24/2018 - The 66-year-old man became ill within a week of being bitten by a tick on the back of his neck. One month later, he collapsed and was rendered unconscious, Sharma and colleagues explain in The American Journal of Medicine. The authors describe the case in their article “Without Further Delay: Lyme carditis.” When the man was […] Read More |
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Tracking ticks in West Virginia using man’s best friend 01/16/2018 - Researchers have conducted numerous animal sentinel studies to monitor the occurrence and spread of Lyme disease. “These studies primarily focused on ticks and associated pathogens collected from domestic dogs because of their ability to produce antibodies to B. burgdorferi, attainable travel history information, and frequency of outdoor exposure,” says Hendricks. Hendricks’ team looked at confirmed […] Read More |
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Borrelia spirochete are masters at evading immune system 01/12/2018 - Mice, guinea pigs, dogs, rabbits and monkeys have long been used to study B. burgdorferi infections. But given that rhesus macaques have been shown to most accurately mimic human infection and response to treatment, Embers and her team inoculated rhesus macaques with B. burgdorferi. “The use of nonhuman primates to model this disease provides the […] Read More |
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Case report: Persistent pain and fatigue after treatment for Lyme disease 01/08/2018 - The patient was concerned she might have Lyme disease because she had repeated exposure to ticks and had reported tick bites in the past. However, “She did not recall a tick bite in the weeks preceding the onset of her illness,” Novak writes in Case Reports in Infectious Diseases. [1] Therefore, the primary care doctor made […] Read More |
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Year in Review: All Things Lyme: Top 10 blogs for 2017 01/01/2018 - Following is a list of the most popular All Things Lyme blogs for 2017. Click on the headline to read the complete article. 1) 12-year-old boy suffers cardiac arrest due to Lyme disease In the February 2017 issue of HeartRhythm Case Reports, doctors describe what they believe is the first case of a Lyme disease […] Read More |
Blog Posts – 2017
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40 years after first case, Lyme disease still a burden for Connecticut 12/29/2017 - Since 1977, “in spite of all endeavors conducted by the Connecticut Department of Public Health (CTDPH) to control the disease, it [Lyme disease] remains endemic with substantial morbidity rates,” states Mollalo, from the Department of Geography at the University of Florida. Mollalo and his team conducted a retrospective study examining changes in the spatial clusters […] Read More |
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Case report: 46-year-old Canadian man with Bell’s palsy 12/26/2017 - There are varying presentations of Lyme disease with the two most common symptoms including erythema migrans and arthritis, according to the authors of a case review published in the Canada Communicable Disease Report. [1] But they also point out that “Bell’s palsy is not rare — it has been found in 8.2% of reported cases […] Read More |
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How to test for Lyme disease using a tick 11/22/2017 - “Xenodiagnosis was positive for B. burgdorferi DNA in a patient with erythema migrans early during therapy and in a patient with PTLDS [post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome],” writes Marques from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health. [1] However, there wasn’t enough evidence to conclude that viable spirochetes were present […] Read More |
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CDC advises doctors to consider Lyme disease in emerging states 11/19/2017 - The CDC previously recommended treatment for patients living in endemic states. “Fourteen states, all located in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, and upper Midwest regions, met the criteria for classification as states with high incidence (Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin),” writes Schwartz and […] Read More |
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MS and Lyme disease patients call for more participation in clinical trials 11/16/2017 - It is clear that more patients need to be involved in research and clinical trials if we are going to advance our understanding of Lyme disease and improve patient care. Only 4 clinical trials, sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have included chronically ill Lyme disease patients. These trials were small and typically […] Read More |
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Depression common in Lyme disease patients 11/13/2017 - Zomer and colleagues found that 1 in 5 Lyme disease patients presenting to the Lyme Center Apeldoorn in the Netherlands between January 2008 and December 2014 were diagnosed with depression and Lyme disease. [1] Depression was identified using the Dutch version of the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II) questionnaire. The BDI-II scale has been used […] Read More |
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Child with Lyme disease presenting as pseudotumor cerebri 11/10/2017 - Individuals with pseudotumor cerebri have an increased intracranial pressure (pressure around the brain) without a tumor or other cause. The symptoms can include stroke-like headaches, nausea and vomiting. The disease can progress to swelling of the optic disc of the eye and vision loss. [2] “A 6-year-old female presented with a 4-day history of bi-frontal, […] Read More |
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Case report: Lyme neuroborreliosis more common in children 11/01/2017 - “Neurological manifestations are reported in up to 15% of adult patients with Lyme disease, while the frequency among children is higher,” writes Kortela and colleagues from the University of Turku, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital in Finland. Painful radiculopathy, facial nerve paresis and lymphocytic meningitis are the most common symptoms of neurologic Lyme […] Read More |
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Persister cells still a problem for Lyme disease patients 10/26/2017 - There is increasing evidence of bacterial persistence in microbiology. “Though its applicability to B. burgdorferi has been controversial, persistence is a widely-accepted phenomenon in microbiology which in some instances can have therapeutic implications,” according to Cabello. [1] “While still a matter of dispute, there are numerous reports of antimicrobial treatment unable to completely eliminate B. […] Read More |
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Blood donor infects premature infants with Babesia 10/20/2017 - A team of researchers at Yale School of Medicine describe three premature infants — all in one neonatal intensive care unit — who contracted Babesia from a single 24-year-old blood donor. The report was published in the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Journal. [1] LISTEN TO PODCAST: Three premature babies who contract Babesia from blood transfusions Babesia is a […] Read More |
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European Ixodes tick found to carry Alpha Gal protein associated with red meat allergy 10/17/2017 - Alpha Gal is a sugar molecule that can be spread through the bite of a Lone Star tick. Once bitten, a person’s immune system begins making antibodies to a-Gal. Red meat is rife with it. So most patients become aware of the allergy or illness after they eat red meat. In an interview with National Geographic, […] Read More |
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Congenital transmission of babesiosis: two case reports 10/08/2017 - Congenital transmission has been described in 7 previous cases, in which the infants presented with fever, anemia, and thrombocytopenia, explains Saetre from Cohen Children’s Medical Center in New Hyde Park, New York. “They all required a blood transfusion.” But these are the first cases, to the authors’ knowledge, in which the mother was diagnosed with […] Read More |
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Borrelia miyamotoi detected in Canada 09/27/2017 - To determine the prevalence of the disease, specifically in Manitoba, Canada, Kadkhoda and his team tested randomly selected blood samples from 250 individuals living in that area, who had suspected or confirmed Lyme disease. Samples had been submitted to the Cadham Provincial Laboratory in Manitoba between 2011 and 2014. The authors found that 10% of […] Read More |
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High prevalence of Babesia microti in Suffolk County, New York 09/25/2017 - Ticks were collected in 2015 and 2016 by tick dragging at 5 sites in Suffolk County, New York (Southampton, Mannorville, Southold, Islip, and Huntington) and 3 sites in Connecticut (Mansfield in Tolland County and Stamford and Greenwich in Fairfield County). “As expected, B. burgdorferi (Bb) was the most frequently detected agent in ticks from Suffolk […] Read More |
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Could ketamine help manage pain in patients with post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome? 09/17/2017 - In the International Medical Case Reports Journal, researchers describe a 31-year-old woman with PTLDS “whose pain was refractory to treatment options such as radiofrequency ablation, vitamin infusion therapy, opioid analgesics, and other pharmacotherapies.” [2] Her pain began gradually, 3 years prior and a short time after being diagnosed and treated for Lyme disease, explains Hanna […] Read More |
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Doctors agree Lyme disease patients at-risk for suicide are under-recognized group 09/13/2017 - Bransfield’s colleagues from Howard University, Rush University Medical Center and the University of North Dakota agree with his assessment, stating, “We would like to applaud the author for conducting such an important study by performing a comprehensive assessment of suicide and its association with Lyme-associated diseases (LADs).” [2] In their article “Suicidal and homicidal tendencies […] Read More |
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Confirmation of Borrelia burgdorferi in South America 09/11/2017 - According to investigators, 2 of the 35 Ixodes spp ticks identified tested positive for Bb s.l. [1] The discovery, however, was not unexpected following reports of borreliosis-like disease in Brazil. “During 2009–2016, Brazil registered 4078 suspected cases of borreliosis-like disease, also known as Baggio-Yoshinari syndrome,” states Dall’Agnol from the Instituto de Pesquisas Veterinárias Desidério Finamor […] Read More |
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Chronic Lyme disease: Doctors seek answers 09/05/2017 - Greenberg’s Letter to the Editor states, “The recently published article by Shapiro et al hoped to be topical in this age of ‘alternative facts’ but fell short, providing mainly biased viewpoints that prevent independent assessment of existing research in chronic Lyme disease. Presenting this conclusion as unquestionable is misleading.” [1] Shapiro and colleagues began their […] Read More |
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Children in the Netherlands remain ill with post-treatment Lyme borreliosis syndrome 09/01/2017 - The authors concluded, however, that the symptoms were not due to an active infection, since they lasted longer than 6 months. And therefore, the patients would not benefit from additional rounds of antibiotic treatment. “As more than 50% of the children had a duration of symptoms of more than 6 months, this further points towards […] Read More |
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Transfusion-transmitted babesiosis popping up in more States in USA 08/28/2017 - Transfusion-transmitted babesiosis (TTB) cases have been reported in Maryland, South Carolina, and Nebraska and “serve as a reminder of the potential for TTB, especially in states not endemic for Babesia,” cautions LeBel II from the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina. In their article published in the journal […] Read More |
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Could autonomic dysfunction lead to pain in Lyme disease? 08/20/2017 - The article, published in Clinical Autonomic Research, cites several cases [2-5] including one in which a 46-year-old patient reports increasing pain and swelling in his left foot. The pain was so significant that his leg became dysfunctional, according to the authors. “Even the slightest contact with the skin of the affected area caused the patient unbearable pain.” [2] […] Read More |
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Suicidal behaviors in patients with Lyme and associated diseases 08/04/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In a 1990 report, Logigian and colleagues from Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, describe rage in patients with chronic neurologic Lyme disease. “Eight patients had excessive daytime sleepiness, and seven had extreme irritability. They became angry over circumstances that previously caused only minor annoyance.” [1] In 1994, Fallon […] Read More |
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Study looks at uveitis due to Lyme disease 08/01/2017 - The retrospective study included 430 patients with uveitis who were referred to the hospital between 2003 and 2016. Seven patients were found to have Lyme-associated uveitis. Six of these individuals had reported walking in the forest previously and two recalled a tick bite. One patient had a history of an erythema migrans (EM) rash. Three […] Read More |
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Could Lyme disease be another infection associated with the onset of Guillain-Barre Syndrome? 07/28/2017 - However, in their case study Clinical association: Lyme disease and Guillain-Barre Syndrome, the authors highlight “Borrelia burgdorferi as an important antecedent infection associated with the development of GBS,” [1] and describe a 31-year-old man diagnosed with both Lyme disease and GBS. The case raises the question: Could Lyme disease be an underrecognized infectious disease triggering or […] Read More |
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Babesia cases skyrocket in Wisconsin with a 26-fold increase 07/24/2017 - In Wisconsin, between 2001 and 2015, “there was a 26-fold increase in the incidence of confirmed babesiosis, in addition to geographic expansion,” according to MMWR. [1] The report listed suburbanization, forest fragmentation patterns, and warming average temperatures as potential causes behind the surge. The rising prevalence of co-infections in rodents may also be to blame […] Read More |
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Low gratitude observed among fibromyalgia patients 07/21/2017 - Clinicians have been increasingly concerned with the low levels of gratitude and poor quality of life for fibromyalgia patients, particularly when compared with patients who have other chronic diseases. Gratitude has been associated with lower levels of depression and enhanced quality of life for patients with chronic illnesses such as heart failure and breast cancer, […] Read More |
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Doctors favor personalized care over IDSA guidelines 07/13/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH A recent study in the Journal of Hospital Medicine examines doctors’ knowledge and acceptance of antibiotic-prescribing guidelines for 3 common illnesses: a skin and soft tissue infection, suspected hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP), and asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB). [3] IDSA recommendations for treating such conditions were given to 30 hospital staff physicians, […] Read More |
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‘Doctor says you are cured, but you still feel the pain.’ 07/11/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In an article entitled “Doctor Says You Are Cured, But You Still Feel the Pain. Borrelia DNA Persistence in Lyme Disease,” Cervantes, from Paul L. Foster School of Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, addresses the persistence of pain as the result of Lyme disease. Studies indicate that […] Read More |
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Could low-dose naltrexone help Lyme disease patients? 07/09/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Now, a new study explores the effects of low-dose naltrexone (LDN) on cytokines in patients with fibromyalgia. The 10-week, single-blind pilot trial conducted by Parkitny and colleagues, from the University of Alabama, examined whether LDN was associated with reduced markers of inflammation in a small group of women with […] Read More |
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One tick bite: six diseases 07/06/2017 - Professor Durland Fish, an epidemiologist at Yale School of Public Health, reminds readers in an article published in Business Insider of the importance in recognizing the following six tick-borne diseases: [1] 1. Lyme disease 2. Babesiosis 3. Anaplasmosis 4. Borrelia miyamotoi 5. Ehrlichiosis 6. Powassan virus Fish discusses the Powassan virus in detail in the article, […] Read More |
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Lyme carditis causes complete heart block in 26-year-old man 06/21/2017 - The patient was evaluated in the emergency room with presyncope (lightheadedness, muscle weakness) and worsening fatigue. Telemetry monitoring demonstrated a “2:1 AV block alternating with complete heart block and a junctional escape rhythm in the range of 30 beats per minute,” according to Chaudhry and colleagues. [1] Doctors suspected Lyme disease and started intravenous ceftriaxone, […] Read More |
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Atypical presentation of early disseminated Lyme disease 06/09/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH “On presentation to our hospital, the patient continued to complain of severe headaches and was noted to have mild unilateral right-sided facial droop and a diffuse macular rash throughout the body,” explains Kantamaneni in his article, A Case of Early Disseminated Neurological Lyme Disease Followed by Atypical Cutaneous Manifestations. […] Read More |
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12-year-old boy suffers cardiac arrest due to Lyme disease 06/01/2017 - “The patient is a 12-year-old previously healthy boy with a recent history of participation in an outdoor camp for 2–3 weeks who began to gasp for air while riding as a passenger in a car, with subsequent cyanosis and cardiac arrest, following participation in recreational outdoor activities earlier that afternoon,” states Cunningham from the Division […] Read More |
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Dogs in Canada at risk for Lyme disease 05/30/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The seroprevalence of positive tests for B. burgdorferi in dogs was highest in areas with close proximity to the United States. The highest seroprevalence was 15.7% in Nova Scotia and 5.1% in Eastern Ontario with surrounding areas of “moderate to low seroprevalence,” according to the study’s lead author, Herrin, […] Read More |
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Could dormancy allow Lyme disease to survive antibiotics? 05/26/2017 - Feng and colleagues from Johns Hopkins University have identified FDA-approved drugs that might work on in vitro B. burgdorferi persisters. [2] Persistence may be a subset of dormancy. “Evidence suggests dormancy consists of a continuum of interrelated states including viable but nonculturable (VBNC) and persistence states,” according to Mali. “VBNC and persistence contribute to antibiotic […] Read More |
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7-year-old girl with Lyme disease presenting as attention deficit disorder 05/21/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Susan, a 7-year-old girl who had difficulty focusing in school, was initially diagnosed by a neurologist with probable attention deficit disorder. But she exhibited numerous other symptoms consistent with Lyme disease, as described by Fallon from the Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center and the Lyme Disease Research […] Read More |
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Stroke as a manifestation of Lyme disease 05/17/2017 - More than half of the cases were from three countries: 16 (25.4%) from Germany, 9 (14.3%) from Switzerland, and 8 (12.7%) from France. Five cases (8%) were from the United States, notes Garkowski from the Medical University of Białystok in Poland. [1] Many of the cases involved relatively young patients, with more than 50% under […] Read More |
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Johns Hopkins’ study supports early identification of Lyme disease patients for re-treatment 05/13/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In the Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, the authors report a substantial number of patients who suffered from severe fatigue, pain and Post-Treatment Lyme disease Syndrome (PTLDS) six months after completing a three-week course of antibiotics for an erythema migrans rash. [4] Out of 107 patients, 6 of the 107 […] Read More |
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The risk of pain and fatigue after three weeks of Lyme disease treatment 05/11/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The cut-offs for fatigue and pain were chosen to reflect clinically significant levels of that symptom based on the literature. A cut-off of 36 or greater was chosen for the Fatigue Severity Score (FSS) to indicate “high fatigue symptoms.” A score of greater than 3 was chosen for the […] Read More |
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When Lyme disease causes a positive test for mononucleosis 05/08/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In the article, published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, Pavletic, from the National Institute of Mental Health, reports “two cases of false positive Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) serologies in early-disseminated Lyme disease.” In the first case, a 16-year-old male from Virginia developed fatigue, myalgias and three brief episodes of […] Read More |
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Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) case resolved with antibiotics 05/05/2017 - The woman presented with asthenia, weakness, and diffuse paresthesias. The electromyography assessment showed mild demyelination. Lyme disease was ruled out based on negative serum and cerebrospinal fluid serologic tests. Intravenous immunoglobulin treatment was performed 8 times for CIDP with subsequent partial response and relapse. Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy is a neurological disorder in which there […] Read More |
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High number of Lyme disease diagnoses through the winter in England 05/03/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In the British Journal of General Practice, Cooper and colleagues discuss their results which are based on hospital episode statistics (HES) data in England from the Health and Social Care Information Centre. [1] The geographic location was based on the patient’s postcode. Patients may have been admitted more than […] Read More |
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Diplopia (double vision) and heart block in early-disseminated Lyme disease 04/30/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH One month prior to being evaluated, the man had removed a tick from his outdoor cat. His laboratory tests were positive on both a Lyme enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay screening and confirmatory Western blot with 3 IgM bands: p41, p39, and p23. His electrocardiography revealed new second-degree Mobitz type I […] Read More |
| First report of Malaria with Lyme disease as a co-infection 04/27/2017 - “As far as we are aware, we are writing the first report of Plasmodium spp. and Borrelia burgdorferi co‐infection (a co‐infection of a tropical parasite and a non-tropical bacterium),” explains Neves from the Infectious Diseases Department, Centro Hospitalar São João, Portugal. The man had returned to Portugal from Angola, where he worked as a welder. […] Read More |
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Young kids and the elderly in New Hampshire are at greatest risk of a tick bite 04/24/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH More than 10,359 tick bite encounters were documented in 25 acute care hospitals in New Hampshire between 2010 and 2014. Twenty-five of the 26 acute care hospitals participated. According to Daly from the Bureau of Infectious Disease Control, New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, “6% and 22% […] Read More |
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Subacute parkinsonism as a complication of Lyme disease 04/18/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The article describes a 55-year-old patient with a 2-month history of chronic neck pain with progressive marked asthenia. “Clinical examination revealed a dysarthria which disappeared in less than 1 hour, a left upper limb cerebellar ataxia and a bilateral asymmetric mild akineto-hypertonic parkinsonism,” according to Pische´ from the Department […] Read More |
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Tracking ticks in Canada with digital images 04/09/2017 - “This study demonstrates that image-based tick identification may be an accurate and useful method of detecting ticks for surveillance when images are of suitable quality,” explains Koffi from the Centre for Foodborne Environmental and Zoonotics Infectious Diseases, Public Health Agency of Canada. Forty-one veterinary clinics located throughout regions of Quebec submitted digital images of ticks […] Read More |
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First case of reversible complete heart block due to Lyme disease reported in Canada 04/06/2017 - “A previously healthy Caucasian 22-year-old male presented to a southern Quebec community hospital with syncopal episodes for one week,” according to Samuel De l’Étoile-Morel from the Department of Internal Medicine, McGill University Health Centre. “He was found to be hypotensive and bradycardic (heart rate 36 beats per minute), due to 3rd degree atrio-ventricular (AV) block, […] Read More |
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Save the two-tier Lyme disease test 04/02/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH However, the western blot TTT has allowed doctors serologic confirmation for some early Lyme disease cases. The test requires that positive or equivocal ELISA tests be confirmed with 2 of 3 IgM bands or 5 of 10 IgG bands. The western blot based TTT has been considered sensitive for […] Read More |
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In culture, novel combinations of antibiotics prove effective for Lyme disease 03/26/2017 - The authors identified, from an FDA drug library and an NCI compound library, three sulfa drugs and trimethoprim for study. “Dapsone, sulfachlorpyridazine and trimethoprim showed very similar activity against stationary phase B. burgdorferi enriched in persisters; however, sulfamethoxazole was the least active drug among the three sulfa drugs tested.” [1] Combinations of antibiotics were more […] Read More |
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Temporary pacemaker effective in acute Lyme carditis patient with severe heart block 03/15/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The patient presented with a syncopal episode with no prodrome, shortness of breath and weakness, according to the case study, entitled Electrocardiographic progression of acute Lyme disease. “Three weeks prior to the presentation, he had experienced an “insect bite” on his calf after being outside. A week later, he […] Read More |
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Melting pot of tick-borne pathogens found in European hedgehogs 03/13/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The study entitled “Melting pot of tick-borne zoonoses: the European hedgehog contributes to the maintenance of various tick-borne diseases in natural cycles urban and suburban areas,” investigates the extent to which hedgehogs contribute to the enzootic cycle of tick-borne pathogens. European hedgehogs are urban dwellers and legally protected in […] Read More |
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Could slowing down the swimming speed of the Lyme disease spirochete help treatment? 03/08/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The Lyme disease bacterium swims in an undulating pattern throughout the body. “The flagella reside within the periplasm, the space between the bacterial cell wall and the outer membrane,” according to Harman, from the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Arizona. [1] “Rotation of the flagella within […] Read More |
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What is it about the Nanotrap® test we know for Lyme disease that led to support by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation? 03/06/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Ceres Nanosciences is marketing the Nanotrap® as “a game changing tool for Lyme disease diagnosis.” The first-of-its-kind urine-based Lyme Antigen test “will provide the most sensitive detection of Lyme disease, at all stages of the disease. Unlike other clinical Lyme disease tests that are indirect, the Nanotrap® LA test […] Read More |
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Doctors recognize Lyme disease in a patient with kidney disease 03/03/2017 - The article, “Chronic Lyme borreliosis associated with minimal change glomerular disease: a case report,” cites four published papers describing kidney damage in Lyme disease patients. The papers consisted of 4 cases of membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (MPGN), a case of crescentic and IgA-deposit nephropathy, and a case of membranous nephropathy. [1] In another case, the authors describe […] Read More |
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Risk of tick bites at outdoor events 03/01/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The event consisted of 2 days of long distance mountain racing through a tick-infested habitat in Scotland. “Teams of 2 runners each navigate mountainous terrain, carrying all their equipment for an overnight camp,” according to Hall from the University of Salford. [1] To encourage participation in the study, racers […] Read More |
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“Fake news” charges do not give credit to the Lyme disease community 02/24/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Polly Murray’s children and neighbors suffered from Lyme disease rather than Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. Alan Steere described a cluster of adolescents and adults with Lyme disease in Lyme Connecticut. William Burgdorfer discovered Borrelia burgdorferi in the midgut of the Ixodes scapularis tick. James Krause discovered Babesia microti in the […] Read More |
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Don’t count on a relapsing fever to diagnose Borrelia miyamotoi 02/23/2017 - Despite having the genetic apparatus, B. miyamotoi typically does not manifest with a relapsing fever. “Although evidence of antigenic variation, which drives the relapsing course of other relapsing fevers due to borrelia has not been demonstrated clinically or in an animal system thus far for B. miyamotoi [2], it has been shown that this species […] Read More |
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American traveler with Lyme disease 02/19/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Doctors in Bogotá, Colombia, describe an encounter with a 24-year-old American woman whom they eventually diagnosed with Lyme disease seven days after she arrived in the country from Virginia, USA. [1] The woman presented to a Bogotá emergency room with a “popular pruritic lesion in [the] right flank.” The […] Read More |
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Borrelia miyamotoi disease can be added to list of traveler’s concerns 02/17/2017 - Doctors described a case of BMD in a previously healthy 63-year-old American man living in Japan. “He reported being bitten by ticks several times while staying with his family at his summer house in the state of Minnesota in the USA from July 25 to August 9, 2013,” according to Oda from the Division of Infectious […] Read More |
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Questions linger on the efficacy of the Lyme disease vaccine 02/14/2017 - The OspA vaccine trial was 78% effective at preventing a culture confirmed erythema migrans rash. But the vaccine was only 48% effective at preventing what the authors referred to as “possible Lyme disease.” “Possible Lyme disease was defined as a flu-like illness (fever, chills, fatigue, headache, joint or muscle aches) with IgM or IgG Western blot […] Read More |
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Ever wonder what is happening in the brain of neurologic Lyme disease patients who remain ill after treatment? 02/11/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The authors found 13% of patients with a spinal tap positive by both cerebrospinal fluid pleocytosis and Borrelia-specific antibodies remained ill for more than 3 months after treatment. Meanwhile, 33% of Lyme neuroborreliosis patients with Borrelia-specific antibodies detected in cerebrospinal fluid and 43% of Lyme neuroborreliosis patients with pleocytosis […] Read More |
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Another Lyme Carditis Case 02/05/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH “Three weeks after the vacation [in Cape Cod], he awoke in the night to use the bathroom. Thirty minutes later, he found himself on the bathroom floor, not recalling any premonitory symptoms for syncope. In the following weeks, he experienced a sharp decrement in exercise tolerance,” according to Patel […] Read More |
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Borrelia burgdorferi activates human astrocytes cells in culture 02/01/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH According to the authors, “If uncontrolled in the context of neuroborreliosis, the astrocyte response could lead to long-term injury in the CNS.” Researchers identified changes in gene expression within 48 hours of infecting cultured astrocytes with Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb). “Understanding how these changes are maintained over time will be […] Read More |
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Questions to ask patients about Lyme disease 01/28/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH A 51-year-old man in the United Kingdom was hospitalized with retrosternal, dull chest pain. He had a history of palpitations, dizziness, and sweating and a previous transient ischemic attack.[1] He presented with a heart rate of 180 with right bundle branch block, a superior QRS axis, and signs of […] Read More |
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What if a pronounced TH17 cytokine response in Lyme arthritis were caused by a persistent infection? 01/23/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH According to a 2017 study published in Clinical Infectious Disease, a pronounced TH17 cytokine response may be beneficial in the early stages of Lyme disease. “In these patients, the levels of inflammatory mediators, particularly TH17-associated cytokines, correlated directly with B. burgdorferi IgG antibodies (P<0.02), suggesting a beneficial role for […] Read More |
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“Urban” ticks carry B. burgdorferi s.l. and B. miyamotoi 01/20/2017 - Questing ticks were collected from grassland, hedges, parks, woodland and woodland edges in Salisbury, an urban area located in Wiltshire, England. Ticks were identified at over 50% of the 25 sites surveyed. Furthermore, investigators reported that the collected ticks carried two pathogens posing a health risk to the public. The “DNA of Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. […] Read More |
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Cochrane review failed to identify a single USA trial on the neurologic complications of Lyme disease 01/17/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In a review, published in Cochrane, entitled Antibiotics for the neurological complications of Lyme disease, Cadavid and colleagues identify several trials investigating the effectiveness of antibiotic treatments for neurological Lyme disease in Europe. The authors describe generally favorable outcomes for treating neurologic complications of Lyme disease. “The majority of people […] Read More |
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Ticks can survive a Northern winter. But can ticks survive a Southern summer? 01/15/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Older hybrid Ixodes scapularis ticks did not do so well. “Four month old larvae resulting from a cross between Wisconsin males and South Carolina females died faster under southern than under northern conditions in the lab,” explains Ginsberg. But then again, it is unlikely that an individual would be […] Read More |
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Azithromycin gel fails to prevent Lyme disease 01/13/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The findings of this double-blinded placebo controlled clinical trial were published in The Lancet Infectious Disease. In a post hoc analysis of 134 subjects, the authors were able to prevent 6 rashes if the gel was applied after a tick bite. The gel delayed the onset of EM rashes […] Read More |
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Borrelia burgdorferi infected deer ticks in the Outer Banks of North Carolina 01/06/2017 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have been charged with identifying counties endemic for Lyme disease (LD). But how accurate is the information provided to the public? As of 2016, 50% of the counties in the USA have been designated as endemic for the disease. [2] “The […] Read More |
Blog Posts – 2016
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All Things Lyme – top 15 blogs for 2016 12/27/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH 1. Growing list of eye problems in Lyme disease Ophthalmic manifestations of tick-borne diseases are increasing. And, “although ocular involvement can be self-limited, delays in diagnosis may result in vision impairment and even blindness,” stated Sathiamoorthi from the Mayo Clinic. 2. Study raises concerns for Babesia patients and blood banks Babesiosis, an […] Read More |
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Further evidence of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto associated with Lyme disease in the South 12/19/2016 - Questing black-legged ticks (I. scapularis) associated with Lyme disease (LD) were collected at several locations on the Outer Banks of North Carolina between 1991 and 2009. The authors found that in October 1991, Borrelia burgdorferi-infected I. scapularis ticks were detected at 50% of the sites (four of the eight). “The spirochetes were consistently detected in […] Read More |
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Eye problems in tick-borne diseases other than Lyme 12/16/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH “Knowledge of systemic and ophthalmic manifestations combined with an understanding of the epidemiology of disease vectors is crucial for the diagnosis of tick-borne diseases,” she explains. While manifestations may be present with LD and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, ocular involvement is rare in other tick-borne diseases such as babesiosis, […] Read More |
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Study raises concerns for Babesia patients and blood banks 12/12/2016 - A recent study published in Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases examined the seroprevalence of B. microti infection in individuals who tested positive for Lyme disease (LD). The authors found that nearly 30% (28.6%) of serum samples taken from individuals with LD tested positive for Babesia. However, since the study was retrospective, the authors could not be […] Read More |
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Lyme meningitis, manifesting as Parkinsonism, is fully reversed with ceftriaxone 12/06/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The case of a 79-year-old man whose symptoms were initially attributed to idiopathic Parkinson’s disease but later found to be due to Lyme meningitis was described by Patel and colleagues in “Atypical Lyme Meningitis with Parkinson Disease-Like Manifestations.” [1] The man’s condition was “fully reversible” with intravenous ceftriaxone. The […] Read More |
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Hair loss in Lyme disease – the last straw? 11/28/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In a recent issue of the American Journal of Dermatopathology, Lynch and colleagues report on the case of a 21-year-old man who suffered hair loss following a tick bite to the scalp. [2] The man presented with nonscarring alopecia, a pattern of hair loss similar to alopecia-areata, also known […] Read More |
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Needless criticism for doctors treating Lyme disease 11/27/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The case report describes an uncommon adverse drug reaction which occurred in a 45-year-old woman who was prescribed antibiotics for Lyme disease and Babesia. Following her diagnosis, the patient received three months of treatment which included doxycycline, minocycline, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. According to the authors, the patient’s “clinical presentation was […] Read More |
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Can we measure the brain’s exaggerated response to pain and sensory input? 11/09/2016 - Studies have found that patients with Lyme disease (LD) experience “exaggerated responses to pain and non-painful stimuli” despite antibiotic treatment. [1, 2] Lopez-Sola and colleagues describe those same responses in patients with fibromyalgia (FM), a condition associated with widespread musculoskeletal pain and tenderness accompanied by fatigue, cognitive, emotional and sleep-related symptoms. [3] “In addition to […] Read More |
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Brazil faces same problems with Lyme disease as seen in the USA 10/30/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The authors take an in-depth look at BYS and how it compares to Lyme disease (LD) found in the United States. Although there are slight differences between the diseases, BYS and LD share similarities on many fronts. [1] “Despite the increasing number of suspect cases, this disease [BYS] is […] Read More |
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Antibiotic treatment points to cause: Lyme disease 10/27/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The article, Hemifacial spasm from Lyme disease: Antibiotic treatment points to cause, examines the case of a 44-year-old patient who was diagnosed with Lyme disease as a result of her rapid improvement following antimicrobial therapy. “Antibiotic administration for diagnostic purposes is not a recommended medical practice, of course, but the […] Read More |
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Seizures and altered mental status after a tick bite 10/09/2016 - The patient, who had been well until 5 days prior to her admission into the hospital, displayed atypical symptoms. Her illness was never attributed to a tick-borne disease, although she had reported removing a tick from her groin two weeks prior to being admitted to the hospital. The patient’s husband reported she began slurring her […] Read More |
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Fatigue can be overlooked as a “sign” of Lyme disease 10/04/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Researchers at New York Medical College have presumed that such fatigue is related to the presence of proinflammatory cytokines and other acute phase proteins. “Because prior studies have demonstrated the presence of elevated levels of proinflammatory cytokines and other molecules in the serum of highly symptomatic patients with erythema […] Read More |
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How can doctors determine if patients with systemic autoimmune joint disease following Lyme disease don’t have a persistent infection? 09/25/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The patients were prescribed anti-inflammatory therapies, primarily disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs). “These treatments included steroids (3%), NSAIDS (20%), disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) (57%), most commonly methotrexate, but also TNF-inhibitors, or combinations of these agents,” reported Arvikar. [1] The authors assumed that the persistent Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb) infection had been […] Read More |
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Quality of Life for Lyme Disease patients in the Netherlands can be grim 09/18/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Participants in the PLEASE trial were scored using an SF-36 physical component of Health (PCS) scale. Their PCS scores of 31 to 32 were worse than those of a diabetic and cancer patient. [3] These patients’ PCS scores have been 42 and 41, respectively. While PCS scores have been […] Read More |
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Steroid use can lead to long-term treatment failure for Lyme disease patients 09/13/2016 - Physicians are warned of the importance in distinguishing between viral or idiopathic facial paralysis (e.g., Bell’s palsy) from Lyme disease-associated facial palsy. Authors of the study, “Steroid Use in Lyme Disease-Associated Facial Palsy Is Associated With Worse Long-Term Outcomes,” used the term Lyme disease-associated facial palsy (LDFP) rather than Bell’s palsy to highlight the differences […] Read More |
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Women with chronic Lyme disease may suffer from a severe immune response triggered by the disease 09/09/2016 - According to a study by Wormser and colleagues, from New York Medical College, “Patients with chronic Lyme disease were significantly more likely to be female than were patients diagnosed with either Lyme disease or with post-Lyme disease syndrome.” “This finding,” says Wormser, “suggests that illnesses with a female preponderance, such as fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, […] Read More |
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How big is the risk of Lyme disease to your job? 09/06/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Doctors from the Tufts University School of Medicine, New England Medical Center described the financial damage Lyme disease caused to 27 individuals with chronic neurologic Lyme disease. “Although most were able to remain employed, three quit their jobs, three decreased their work load to part-time, and two retired earlier,” […] Read More |
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How important are T-cell chemokines in chronic manifestations of Lyme disease? 08/30/2016 - The study, “CCL19 as a Chemokine Risk Factor for Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome: A Prospective Clinical Cohort Study,” found T-cell chemokines are an important part of the immune response in early Lyme disease (LD). Researchers at Johns Hopkins identified T-cell chemokines CCL19 that rise in early LD then drop to normal in 86% of patients […] Read More |
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How to kill a tick on your clothes 08/16/2016 - The aspiring young scientist, Jackie Flynn, reported that her informal study found ticks were killed after 5 minutes in the dryer, not one hour. The time difference was significant and caught the attention of researchers at the CDC, who decided to investigate further. Now, three years later, a new study published in Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases has, […] Read More |
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Watch and wait approach does not work for Lyme disease 08/11/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Physicians who prescribe no more than a three-week course of antibiotics will typically recommend watchful waiting rather than prescribing additional antibiotic treatment for patients suffering with persistent symptoms. However, two leading research groups have described the dangers in not taking action. Investigators at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine […] Read More |
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Sweats may be a sign of Babesia 08/03/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The study by Krause and colleagues, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, did not break down the time of day the patients exhibited sweats. [2] The authors noted, however, additional symptoms their patients suffered including fatigue (81%), headaches (77%), fevers (58%), chills (42%), myalgias (38%), anorexia […] Read More |
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Diversity of Borrelia burgdorferi strains may explain treatment failures 07/22/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Differing genotypes of Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb) that help explain strain virulence have been described by researchers. [8] Each genotype expresses a different Outer Surface Protein C (OspC) on the surface of the spirochete, each with differing virulence. [7] “We define three categories of major OspC groups: one that is […] Read More |
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Even more evidence of Lyme disease in the South 07/15/2016 - This expansion into new geographic territories includes regions in the South, often thought to be free of ticks carrying Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease. Investigators, for instance, have identified blacklegged ticks (Ixodes scapularis) or western blacklegged ticks (Ixodes pacificus) ticks in 71 (28%) of the 254 counties in Texas. [1] Both of […] Read More |
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Lyme disease can cost billions 07/10/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The cases were identified based on the physicians’ determination in the medical record, patients’ clinical findings, tick exposure, and other relevant details (e.g., laboratory results). The mean costs of early Lyme disease consisted of $801 for direct medical costs, $259 for indirect medical costs, $52 for non-medical costs, and […] Read More |
| How long has Lyme disease been around? 07/06/2016 - In an accidental discovery, Professor George Poinar, Jr., a palaeoentomologist and parasitologist, identified ticks preserved in a piece of amber estimated to be between 15 and 20 million years old. The scientist, from Oregon State University, had acquired the amber while visiting the Dominican Republic 25 years earlier. But just recently examined it with a […] Read More |
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Video Blog: MOST CHILDREN WITH POSITIVE IGM IMMUNOBLOT FOR LYME DISEASE ARE TRULY POSITIVE 06/28/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Lantos and colleagues from Duke University Medical Center recently questioned the accuracy of the IgM immunoblot for Lyme disease (LD) in children and adolescents by reviewing a series of patients admitted to Boston Children’s Hospital during a 7-year period. The study, False Positive Lyme Disease IgM Immunoblots in Children, […] Read More |
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Researchers identify novel drug combinations to combat Lyme persister cells 06/22/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In a study entitled “A Drug Combination Screen Identifies Drugs Active against Amoxicillin-Induced Round Bodies of In Vitro Borrelia burgdorferi Persisters from an FDA Drug Library,” Feng and colleagues hypothesize that when Borrelia burgdorferi, the Lyme bacterium, is confronted with certain stressors, such as starvation or exposure to antibiotics, […] Read More |
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Video Blog: Sick for years with Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome 06/20/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The study focuses on the similarities and differences in male and female Lyme disease patients. However, the authors give little attention to the fact that both the male and female participants suffered from Post-Treatment Lyme Disease Syndrome a decade after treatment. A growing number of studies describe individuals sick […] Read More |
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Video Blog: More problems with 2-week course of antibiotics for Lyme disease 06/14/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH As early as 1990, Logigian and colleagues hypothesized that a two-week course of intravenous ceftriaxone would not successfully eradicate the Lyme bacterium. “The likely reason for relapse is failure to eradicate the spirochete completely with a two-week course of intravenous ceftriaxone therapy.” [3] A recently published clinical trial from […] Read More |
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Reversible causes of Dementia and Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus 06/12/2016 - According to Rolling Stone, doctors believed the 79-year-old singer’s “increasingly debilitating memory loss was due to either Alzheimer’s or to dementia brought on by blows to the head from the boxing, football and rugby of his teens and early twenties.” He reportedly could not remember what he was doing from one moment to the next, […] Read More |
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ILADS Lyme disease guidelines rank in top 5% of all research articles, as scored by Altmetrics 05/27/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Altmetrics are metrics and qualitative data that are complementary to traditional, citation-based metrics that track and demonstrate the reach and influence of research publications to key stakeholders. [1] The Altmetrics score “can signal that research is changing a field of study, the public’s health, or having any other number of […] Read More |
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Video Blog: Netherlands trial does not support short-term therapy for Lyme disease 05/24/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In the article, Randomized Trial of Longer-term Antibiotic Therapy for Symptoms Attributed to Lyme Disease, the authors “assessed whether longer-term antibiotic treatment of persistent symptoms attributed to Lyme disease leads to better outcomes than does shorter-term treatment.” They report that “longer-term antibiotic treatment did not have additional beneficial effects […] Read More |
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JAMA review ignores chronic manifestations of Lyme disease 05/11/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH “Multiple trials have shown efficacy for a 10-day course of oral doxycycline for treatment of erythema migrans and for a 14-day course for treatment of early neurologic Lyme disease in ambulatory patients,” the review concludes. Furthermore, “Evidence indicates that a 10-day course of oral doxycycline is effective for HGA […] Read More |
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Retraction: Still no evidence that deer flies or deer keds transmit B. burgdorferi or A. phagocytophilum 05/01/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The Journal of Vector Ecology was talking about deer keds seen below (family Hippoboscidae, genus Lipoptena), not deer flies (family Tabanidae, genus Chrysops). Thomas Mather pointed out a fun blog about this “tick with wings” at https://www.tickencounter.org/tick_notes/tick_notes_deer_keds#top 2. The Anaplasma phagocytophilum identified in the paper has not been identified […] Read More |
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Don’t dismiss the poor quality of life for individuals with Lyme disease 04/22/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In the recent Clinical Infectious Diseases article entitled “Long-term follow-up of patients with Lyme disease: Longitudinal analysis of clinical and quality of life measures,” the authors conclude that “both mental health and physical health scores increased to be at or above national average over time, regardless of Lyme disease […] Read More |
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Tick-borne co-infections are the norm, not the exception 03/29/2016 - Lyme disease was first identified in 1975 in a group of children and adolescents living in Connecticut, who suffered from recurrent attacks of asymmetric swelling and pain in several large joints, particularly in the knee. The patients were initially diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. “The typical patient has had 3 recurrences, but 16 patients have […] Read More |
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What might sudden cardiac death due to Lyme disease look like? 03/22/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Fatal Lyme carditis is rarely identified. In reviewing five post mortem cases, Muehlenbach and colleagues found that Lyme disease was not suspected for one patient who complained of episodic shortness of breath, while the second patient tested negative for Lyme disease. Two other patients did not seek medical care. […] Read More |
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Level with Lyme disease patients, at least 1 in 3 can fail treatment 03/14/2016 - The Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) published evidence-based treatment guidelines in 2006 which states, “Considerable confusion and controversy exist over the frequency and cause of this process [chronic Lyme disease] and even over its existence.” Furthermore, any “[ongoing] symptoms appear to be more related to the aches and pains of daily living rather than […] Read More |
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Probiotics can be priceless in preventing Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea 03/11/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH There are at least 300,000 new cases of Lyme disease every year in the United States. As this patient group requires antibiotic therapy to treat Lyme and other tick-borne illnesses, there is a chance they can develop C. difficile. However, a rush decision to not prescribe or to discontinue […] Read More |
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How Lyme myocarditis might present in an adolescent patient 03/07/2016 - In 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) described three cases of sudden deaths associated with Lyme-induced myocarditis. “During November 2012 and July 2013, one woman and two men (ranging in age from 26 to 38 years) from high-incidence Lyme disease states experienced sudden cardiac death and, on postmortem examination, were found to […] Read More |
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Doxycycline not to blame for acute pancreatitis 03/06/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Study examines doxycycline as cause of acute pancreatitis in patient initially treated for suspected Lyme disease. A 51-year-old man was admitted to the hospital with a one-week history of extreme fatigue, malaise, and confusion. Three days prior to admittance, the man had started oral doxycycline for presumed Lyme disease […] Read More |
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No commercial diagnostic tests available for emerging tick-borne diseases 02/25/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH A recent discovery by researchers at Mayo Clinic demonstrates the complexity of tick-borne organisms. Pathologists at the institution have described a new Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato genospecies in six patients. The new species, provisionally named Borrelia mayonii, was found in the Upper Midwest but it may be elsewhere. Symptoms are […] Read More |
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Study demonstrates further evidence larval ticks may be a threat to humans 02/23/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH According to a paper published this week in Parasites & Vectors, “larval bites on humans, which easily go unnoticed, can cause Lyme borreliosis and Borrelia miyamotoi disease.” Researchers found that larvae of Ixodes ricinus can transmit Borrelia afzelii and B. miyamotoi to rodents. [1] Individuals living in the Netherlands […] Read More |
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Different response by CDC to spread of Zika virus vs. Lyme disease-carrying ticks 02/17/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Although Lyme disease and the Zika virus are transmitted by different types of vectors, both illnesses can cause severe, long-term health damage and are of enormous concern to the general public. The response by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to each threat, however, has been decidedly […] Read More |
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Cognitive issues following a stroke due to Lyme disease 02/15/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH A study by Nimgaonkar and colleagues examines the relationship between cognitive deficits and infectious agents. The authors found a temporal cognitive decline in patients with exposure to infectious agents in a population-based, aging cohort. [1] The authors reported that exposure to cytomegalovirus (CMV), Herpes Simplex virus, type 1 (HSV-1), […] Read More |
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Limits on antibiotics for Lyme disease leave doctors in Limbo 02/09/2016 - As many as one-third of patients with Lyme disease are ill on long-term follow-up. A population-based, retrospective cohort study in Massachusetts found 34% of patients suffered from arthritis or recurrent arthralgias, neurocognitive impairment, and neuropathy or myelopathy, an average of 6 years after treatment for Lyme disease. [1] Meanwhile, 62% of a cohort of 215 consecutively treated Lyme disease patients in […] Read More |
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Patients should be warned of Lyme disease complications, including Lyme encephalopathy 01/28/2016 - by Daniel Cameron, MD MPH Physicians, including Dr. Gary Wormser who operate the facility, recently published a review article, which states, “We have never seen the poorly defined entity referred to as Lyme encephalopathy and question its existence. We also question the existence of a diffuse axonal peripheral neuropathy as a manifestation of Lyme disease, […] Read More |
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2015 – Google searches on Lyme disease jump to their highest level 01/15/2016 - Italy. Google Search Trends on Lyme disease. 2011 – 2015. In 2015, Lyme disease stole the spotlight. Quite possibly, like never before. The disease made international headlines throughout the year, grabbing the attention of individuals around the world, as big-name celebrities and high-profile executives went public and opened up about their struggles with a disease that has been stuck […] Read More |
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Survey finds most Connecticut residents are unaware of Babesia and Anaplasmosis 01/07/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD, MPH The risk of becoming infected with Babesia is rising. It’s common to find ticks and enzootic hosts carrying both Borrelia burgdorferi (the causative agent of Lyme disease) and Babesia microti. In fact, between 12% and 42% of rodents are co-infected with both agents. Up to 40% of patients with […] Read More |
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Time to designate Lyme disease as a pandemic? 01/05/2016 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD, MPH The survey’s data should not come as a surprise. Twelve years ago, in 2004, while testifying before the Connecticut Public Health Department, the state’s chief epidemiologist Dr. James Hadler warned officials that “… roughly 1% of the entire population, or probably 34,000 people, are getting a diagnosis of Lyme disease […] Read More |
Blog Posts – 2015
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25th anniversary of first study describing chronic neurologic Lyme disease 12/30/2015 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD, MPH It has been 25 years since chronic neurologic Lyme disease (CNL) was first described in a paper published in the New England Journal of Medicine. [1] The study’s investigators included Dr. Alan Steere, the physician credited with discovering Lyme disease in 1977. In describing chronic neurologic Lyme disease (LD), […] Read More |
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Top Lyme and tick-borne disease stories of 2015 12/27/2015 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD, MPH As the year comes to a close, we look back at some of the top news stories for 2015. 1. Steven A. Cohen’s Foundation Donates $6.5M to Lyme Disease “I was shocked to learn how many people suffer from Lyme disease in silence, and how much we still need […] Read More |
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Culture evidence of Lyme disease in antibiotic treated patients living in the Southeast 12/18/2015 - Scientists are increasingly focusing their attention on identifying tick-borne pathogens present in the Southeastern United States. In 2015, Lantos and colleagues released a paper which reviewed the geographic expansion of Lyme disease in the Southeast over the past 14 years. They found “a marked increase in Lyme disease cases in Virginia, particularly from 2007 onwards […] Read More |
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Renewed call for dialogue on Lyme disease 12/13/2015 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD, MPH “We need more national and international debates on Lyme disease, complemented by a solid research agenda and a focus on cutting edge biological technologies,” writes Borgermans and colleagues. “The medical community has been collectively forced out of its comfort zone on Lyme disease by increasing evidence of the complexity […] Read More |
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Babesia and Lyme — it’s worse than you think 12/08/2015 - Although Lyme disease is the most talked about tick-transmitted disease, Babesia is more common than you might think. In the 2015 issue of Trends in Parasitology, Diuk-Wasser and colleagues report that up to 40% of patients with Lyme disease experienced concurrent Babesiosis. [1] This means that out of the estimated 300,000 cases of Lyme disease […] Read More |
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Treatment options for an anxious, suicidal patient with a history of Lyme disease 12/02/2015 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH In an article entitled “New-onset Panic, Depression with Suicidal Thoughts and Somatic Symptoms in a Patient with a History of Lyme Disease,” researchers highlight the complexity of evaluating and treating a patient with a history of suspected Lyme disease who presented with neuropsychiatric symptoms. [1] The authors, Amir Garakani […] Read More |
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Travelers heading south cannot escape the threat of tick-borne diseases 11/21/2015 - Although much attention has been focused on the dangers blacklegged ticks pose in the Northeast in transmitting Lyme disease, there are multiple tick species in the South that carry a host of diseases travelers should be aware of. The number of tick-borne cases has been steadily rising in the South and tick populations have been […] Read More |
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Time for shared decision-making when treating Lyme disease 11/11/2015 - The goal is to move away from a model of care where the doctor is the sole voice with treatment decisions toward a patient-centered practice that fully involves the patient in each decision at every stage of care. Slowly but steadily, the medical community has responded, adopting a shared decision-making process with a broad […] Read More |
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At least 50% of patients with Lyme neuroborreliosis remain ill years after treatment 10/29/2015 - There are doctors who continue to question the existence and severity of chronic manifestations of Lyme disease (LD), despite a growing number of cases described in leading medical journals. [1,2] The cases include chronic neurologic Lyme disease, [3] Lyme encephalopathy, [4,5] neuropsychiatric LD, [6] post-treatment chronic Lyme disease, [7] post-Lyme disease [8] and post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome. [9] The […] Read More |
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Lyme disease diagnosis almost missed in patient with Babesia 10/22/2015 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH The importance of clinicians considering other tick-borne diseases, such as Babesia, when evaluating patients with Lyme disease has been addressed in the literature. Surprisingly, however, physicians may actually not consider Borrelia burgdorferi (the Lyme pathogen) as a “co-infection” in patients diagnosed with a tick-borne disease. Such was the case for an elderly man […] Read More |
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B. burgdorferi persister cells survive attacks by antibiotics and may contribute to chronic illness in Lyme disease patients 09/27/2015 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Persistent infection of Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb) has been proven experimentally in Peromyscus mice, laboratory mice, rats, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, dogs and non-human primates. [1-8] Some researchers and clinicians argue, the existence of a persistent Bb infection explains why some Lyme disease patients remain sick even after treatment. According to one study, as many […] Read More |
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Hundreds of doctors treating Lyme disease with extended use and multiple antibiotics 09/16/2015 - The Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) has long insisted that a maximum antibiotic course of 21 days is sufficient to eradicate the Lyme bacterium, while the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) recommends a longer course of therapy with duration dependent on response to therapy. [1] So, what treatment approach are physicians adopting in their […] Read More |
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Politics of Lyme disease turn patients into victims 09/09/2015 - Lyme in the Limelight, published by Hamodia newspaper, features interviews with veterans in the field including researchers, physicians and advocacy leaders. As a representative of the Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) and co-author of the practice guidelines for the treatment of Lyme disease, Dr. Eugene Shapiro gives his perspective on an illness he believes is easy […] Read More |
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Study volunteers with newly diagnosed Lyme disease needed 09/01/2015 - Dr. Daniel Cameron & Associates, located in the Hudson Valley New York area, is uniquely positioned in a region where Lyme disease is endemic, enabling the practice to participate in much-needed clinical research projects, including the validation of newly developed Lyme disease tests. Since 1987, Dr. Cameron has been evaluating and treating thousands of individuals with tick-borne […] Read More |
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Physician-turned-patient becomes Lyme advocate 08/26/2015 - Dr. Neil Spector, one of the nation’s top cancer researchers and oncologists, has become a powerful advocate for Lyme disease patients. In his memoir, Gone in a Heartbeat: A Physician’s Search for True Healing, Dr. Spector chronicles his battle with debilitating and at times, life threatening cardiac problems due to undiagnosed Lyme carditis. Despite his standing within the medical community, physicians and […] Read More |
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Hundreds of Lyme disease patients in Tennessee 08/04/2015 - The study describes a significant problem with under-reporting (∼196 unreported cases per year) based on data from BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee (BCBST), and the Center for Environmental and Communicable Diseases. The paper proposed using medically diagnosed cases from a Tennessee-based Managed Care Organization (MCO) to help bridge gaps in the surveillance system. (See table below.) In […] Read More |
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Most cases consistent with Lyme disease are not tested in non-endemic region 07/28/2015 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH Researchers from Duke University Health System in North Carolina reviewed the medical records of 1,621 patients, who had a clinical history consistent with Lyme disease and sought treatment at the facility between 2005 and 2010. [1] The authors, who were examining the predictive value of Lyme disease tests, discuss their […] Read More |
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Back yards at risk of migrating deer ticks 07/11/2015 - “The increases in the geographic range and population sizes of several tick species over the previous few decades in the northern hemisphere have resulted in dramatic increases in the incidence of tick-borne diseases such as tick-borne encephalitis, Lyme disease, Babesiosis, Anaplasmosis, and human granulocytic Ehrlichiosis,” says Camilo E. Khatchikian, a postdoctoral researcher in Penn’s Department […] Read More |
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Chronic Lyme disease patients want to be treated, not ‘managed’ by physicians 06/30/2015 - “Minds are like parachutes. They only function when open.” This particular quote by Thomas Dewar came to mind after reading an article, Chronic Lyme Disease (1) in the June issue of Infectious Disease Clinics of North America. In it, the author writes, “the scientific community has largely rejected chronic, treatment-refractory Borrelia burgdorferi infection.” This is based on “the failure […] Read More |
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What is that smell? 06/24/2015 - Research studies examining impaired or heightened sense of smell have been focused primarily on patients suffering from neurological disorders, like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Only recently, have researchers begun to investigate the connection between olfactory disorders and autoimmune diseases. And, while there have been many anecdotal reports from Lyme disease patients complaining about their sensitivity […] Read More |
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Larval ticks may be a threat after all ─ insights based on study of Borrelia miyamotoi 06/15/2015 - When ticks hatch from eggs, they’re called larva. At this stage, they have only six legs. After taking their first blood meal, the larvae molt into 8-legged nymphal ticks. Most studies have identified blacklegged ticks in the nymph stage as posing the greatest threat to humans. But Dr. Molloy now raises concerns that these newly […] Read More |
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New study by guidelines author dismisses risk of chronic Lyme disease 06/08/2015 - by Daniel Cameron, MD, MPH Physicians use various terms when referring to chronic manifestations of Lyme disease ─ Lyme encephalopathy, Chronic Lyme disease (CLD), Post-Lyme disease syndrome (PLDS), or Post-treatment Lyme disease (PTLD). The National Institute of Health (NIH) conducted four separate trials, which validated the existence, severity [5,6] and duration [5,6] of chronic manifestations […] Read More |
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What happens to the brain during acute Lyme neuroborreliosis? 05/04/2015 - Individuals diagnosed with Lyme neuroborreliosis typically suffer from headaches, fatigue, memory loss, learning disabilities, and depression. Clinical findings have included meningitis, cranial neuritis, radiculoneuritis, encephalopathy, encephalitis, encephalomyelitis, radiculitis, radiculoneuritis, mononeuropathies, plexopathies, and demyelinating neuropathies. Dr. Mario T. Philipp and colleagues at the Tulane National Primate Research Center launched an investigation to examine the role of inflammation […] Read More |
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Lyme disease infographic reports the facts 03/04/2015 - As these infographics on Lyme disease demonstrate, patients can suffer from long-lasting symptoms if not diagnosed early on and treated adequately. Diagnostic tests are unreliable. And contrary to popular belief, patients often don’t have the classic bulls-eye rash or recall a tick bite. The data provided in these infographics are supported by peer-reviewed, published studies, as referenced below. (Infographic produced […] Read More |
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Chikungunya virus symptoms can mimic Lyme disease 02/22/2015 - The Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) can cause flu-like symptoms, including fevers, headaches, joint pain, muscle aches, nausea, rashes and malaise. The same symptoms we see with Lyme disease. CHIKV symptoms normally develop 3 to 5 days after a person is bitten by an infected mosquito. Not all mosquitoes carry the disease. The two types that can transmit […] Read More |
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Lyme disease costs healthcare system up to $1.3 billion annually, study finds 02/07/2015 - An estimated 240,000 to 440,000 people are diagnosed with Lyme disease each year, with the an average of $3,000 spent annually per patient on treatment, according to the study, published online in PLOS ONE. “Our study looks at the actual costs of treating patients in the year following their Lyme diagnosis,” says study author Emily Adrion, MS. […] Read More |
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Canada may see new tick-borne threat: Babesia 02/04/2015 - The topic of ‘chronic’ Lyme disease had been hotly debated among medical groups, with infectious disease specialists coming under fire during a 2014 Senate hearing when one participant suggested that the growing number of Lyme disease cases were, in fact, cases ofchronic fatigue. Nonetheless, in mid-December, the Canadian Senate unanimously passed Bill C-442, the Federal Framework […] Read More |
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Reality star Yolanda Foster shines spotlight on Chronic Neurologic Lyme disease 01/26/2015 - As her story continues making headlines around the country, there appears to be a sense of uneasiness among many people discussing Yolanda’s situation. When OK magazine called recently, I was asked by the reporter, “Can Lyme really cause problems like this?” The possibility that a disease, which began with a simple tick bite could progress […] Read More |
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2014 Lyme Review 01/10/2015 - Major stories for 2014 on Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases. Covering newly discovered tick-borne pathogens, the spread of existing tick-borne diseases into new geographic regions, an increasing focus on co-infections and legislative and educational efforts to deal with the growing epidemic of Lyme disease. Read More |
Blog Posts – 2014
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Don’t let Scrooge ruin Christmas for Lyme disease patients 12/23/2014 - The authors “tested the effects of biological explanations among mental health clinicians, specifically examining their empathy toward patients,” and found that biological explanations significantly reduced clinicians’ empathy. “This is alarming because clinicians’ empathy is important for the therapeutic alliance between mental health providers and patients and significantly predicts positive clinical outcomes,” the authors point out. This study focuses […] Read More |
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Senate Unanimously Passes Lyme Disease Act – Canada 12/13/2014 - The Senate’s unanimous passing of Bill C-442, An Act to Create a Federal Framework on Lyme disease, provides hope and promise for both current and future Lyme disease patients. The following article, entitled “No Coordination of Care in Canadian Health Care,” published recently in The Medicine Hat News, describes the struggles that are all-too typical for so many Canadians […] Read More |
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It’s Chronic Fatigue, Not Lyme, infectious disease doc tells Senators 12/07/2014 - While many of the points addressed in the Bill have been agreed upon by all stakeholders at the meeting, certain wording within the bill has created concern for infectious disease specialists, who argue that it suggests support for ‘pseudo-science’ treatment guidelines, while dismissing current evidence-based guidelines put forth by the Infectious Disease Society of America […] Read More |
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A Tribute to Dr. Willy Burgdorfer, discoverer of Lyme spirochete 11/24/2014 - By Alan MacDonald, M.D. Guest Blog A memorial service was recently held in Hamilton, Montana, to honor Dr. Willy Burgdorfer. I had the great pleasure of knowing Willy and offer these words as tribute to his memory. He will be greatly missed and will be forever positively impacting patient’s lives. “He was a humble man. […] Read More |
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Canada’s Bill C-442 hopes to create dialogue and federal plan for Lyme disease 11/18/2014 - While the journal authors acknowledge that field studies indicate confirmed endemic areas or potential, future risk areas for ticks has grown from 1 region in 1997 to 13 regions in 2006, the authors minimize the growing concern of tick-borne illness in Canada. They point to the minor number of reported cases. In 2013, 500 cases were reported in Canada. However, the number of reported Lyme disease […] Read More |
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When Patients Know More Than Doctors 11/05/2014 - Guest Blog By Jennifer Bybel Lown, Nurse Practitioner Dr. Daniel Cameron & Associates While Lyme disease isn’t necessarily rare, it is a less understood disease, surrounded by conflicting information. And, one in which, all too frequently, family members seem to be more knowledgeable than medical professionals. We recently treated a patient who had been sick […] Read More |
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Where is the FDA test for relapsing fever spirochete, Borrelia miyamotoi? 10/27/2014 - If the FDA gets its way, physicians would only have access to diagnostic tests for tick borne diseases that are FDA approved. This would eliminate “specialty labs,” and severely restrict a clinicians ability to diagnose Lyme disease, as well as other tick-borne co-infections. This is a dangerous move in a period when we’re seeing an […] Read More |
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Lyme disease: One size does not fit all 10/20/2014 - A read of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) 2014 evidence based guidelines says otherwise. The ILADS guidelines focus on the risk of poor outcomes such as chronic neurologic Lyme disease, Lyme encephalopathy, and post-Lyme disease syndrome. The ILADS guidelines highlight the poor evidence using the Institute of Medicine’s recommended evidence grading system. The […] Read More |
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Is your fibromyalgia patient a candidate for Lyme disease treatment? 10/08/2014 - Fibromyalgia and Lyme disease symptoms can include muscle pain, fatigue, sleep disturbances, gastrointestinal complaints, difficulty concentrating, headaches and temperature, light and sound sensitivities. Women are also more likely to be diagnosed with the condition. According to the National Institutes of Health, between 80% and 90% of people diagnosed with fibromyalgia are women. The treatments, unfortunately, are not […] Read More |
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Obama plan to fight antibiotic resistance may limit treatment for Lyme disease 09/22/2014 - The task force by Executive Order must submit an action plan by February 15, 2015, outlining specific steps on how to implement a national strategy to combat antibiotic resistance and accelerate research and development on new antibiotics by 2020. The task force will be led by the secretaries of Health and Human Services, the Department […] Read More |
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Congratulations Congressman Chris Gibson, NY 19th CD, on passage of the Lyme disease bill 09/10/2014 - Congratulations are also in order for Congressman Chris Smith, NJ for all his years of support and work on making this bill. Congressman Sean Maloney, NY and Wolf, VA are to be thanked for their leadership as well. Steve Bulger, District Director, Congressman Chris, Gibson - NY 19th CD, 518-610-8133 (office) Thanks are also in order […] Read More |
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Lyme disease expected to be epidemic in Ohio 09/03/2014 - Over the past five years, the number of black-legged ticks (Ixodes scapularis), also known as deer ticks, in Ohio has exploded, and in turn, caused the number of reported Lyme disease cases to double, according to a new study conducted by Ohio State University and the Ohio Department of Health. [1] The authors in the […] Read More |
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Lyme disease patients may struggle with depression 08/18/2014 - One study found that more than 1/3 of patients with chronic neurologic Lyme disease suffered from depression, in addition to fatigue, headaches, poor concentration, lightheadedness, and joint pain. While depression is not uncommon in patients with chronic illness, it does seem to be more prevalent among patients with Lyme disease, according to Dr. Robert Bransfield, […] Read More |
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LabCorp to deny physicians access to western blot tests for Lyme disease 08/18/2014 - Physicians have been disappointed by the poor sensitivity of the EIA or IFA screening tests for Lyme disease. The sensitivity of the whole-cell enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to the B31 strain typically falls between 33-49% for patients presenting with an EM.[2-4] The sensitivity of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved complement peptide C6 (C6-peptide) […] Read More |
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Senator Schumer joins the Lyme disease community in addressing oral antibiotic shortages 08/14/2014 - Senator Schumer addressed the shortage of doxycycline in his August 12, 2004 press conference in the Hudson Valley, New York. His comment included the following “LOOMING SHORTAGE OF DOXYCYCLINE, AN ANTIBIOTIC USED TO TREAT LYME DISEASE, IS SENDING PRICE OF DRUG SKYROCKETING DURING ONE OF WORST LYME SEASONS – SENATOR CALLS ON FDA TO INVESTIGATE […] Read More |
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ILADS reminds parents of the ABCs of Lyme and other Tick-borne Infections 08/14/2014 - For Immediate Release: For Information or Interview Requests Contact: Sue Ferrara, PhD pressinfo@ilads.org (609) 947-9489 Back to School: The ABCs of Lyme and other Tick-borne Infections As families transition from summer activities to Back-to-School preparations, the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) urges parent to think about where their children have been this summer; […] Read More |
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Why ILADS 2014 treatment guidelines are important 08/04/2014 - The ILADS 2014 treatment guidelines for Lyme disease identified a number of key issues in making these recommendations: Lyme disease is a complex illness and patients may experience both acute and persistent manifestations Persistent manifestations may produce profound quality-of-life impairments, yet the mechanisms that produce persistent manifestations are poorly understood. The available evidence regarding the […] Read More |
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Loss of libido and Lyme disease 08/04/2014 - by Daniel J. Cameron, MD MPH A cross-sectional pilot study carried out in the Breakspear neuroscience department in the United Kingdom reported that 50% of 16 serologically positive Lyme disease patients had a loss of libido compared to 0% in 18 controls (p<.001) The loss of libido was not associated with detrusor muscle dysfunction or […] Read More |
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Babesia becomes the Number 2 tick-borne illness behind Lyme disease in the Hudson Valley 08/04/2014 - A co-infection of Babesia with Lyme disease can increase the severity and duration of illness. Over 6% of questing Nymphal ticks were infected with the pathogens that cause Babesia and Lyme disease. Unfortunately, standard antibiotic treatments for Lyme disease such as doxycycline, amoxicillin, or zithromax are not effective for Babesia. Antiparasitic therapy with when added […] Read More |
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A new DNA sequence test for Borrelia burgdorferi and Borrelia miyamotoi Infections 08/04/2014 - Krause et al. reported that B. miyamotoi can cause illness and is treatable. Yet, Krause et al also reported that traditional tests for Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb) cannot be used to diagnose B. miyamotoi (B. Miyamotoi). [1] Dr. Lee, an investigator at the Department of Pathology, Milford Hospital, Connecticut described a novel DNA Sequencing test that […] Read More |
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APKun
04/22/2020 (8:39 am)
Bellamy contends that there is no such disease as chronic Lyme and that the consensus of infectious disease experts is that long-term use of antibiotics to treat these patients can be harmful.
Dr. Daniel Cameron
04/22/2020 (1:08 pm)
Bellamy is an attorney in Florida. Her position reflects the diversity of opinions.
Behealthis.Com
03/15/2020 (7:45 pm)
Cameron has been practicing medicine in New York since 1985. He primarily treats patients with a history of Lyme disease or associated tick-borne diseases, such as Bartonella and Babesia.