Lyme Science Blog

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 […]

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

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

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.

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)

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

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

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

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

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