How do ticks move when seeking a meal?
A new study examines the question: How do ticks move when seeking a host? It’s well-known that ticks will sit-and-wait atop vegetation as they quest for their next meal, sitting with their front legs extended and grabbing onto a host passing by. “It is also known that ticks are willing to migrate horizontally (or actively search), when stimulated by the presence of host cues,” and that host-seeking behavior differs among life stages, writes Curtis and colleagues in the journal Medical and Veterinary Entomology. [1]
Man with Lyme disease and stroke. An Inside Lyme podcast.
I will be discussing an 83-year-old-man with Lyme disease and stroke in this Inside Lyme podcast. Legast and her colleague first discussed this case in the journal Case Reports in Neurological Medicine in 2018.
COVID-19 chronic manifestations: Lessons from Lyme disease?
Since the COVID-19 pandemic erupted, scientists have focused their attention primarily on the early manifestations of this novel coronavirus. We have yet to learn what the chronic manifestations from the virus will be. Could lessons from Lyme disease help us understand COVID-19?
A confused woman with Anaplasmosis and Babesia infection
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 the case of a 78-year-old woman, initially believed to have sepsis but eventually diagnosed with an anaplasmosis and babesia infection.
Treatment varies for Bell’s palsy in children with Lyme disease
“The UK county of Hampshire is a high incidence area of Lyme disease,” according to a recent article in the International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology. ¹ Hampshire is a county in southern England. The study aimed to investigate the extent of idiopathic Bell’s palsy in children, the degree of variation in treatment, and “whether Lyme disease was being considered as a cause and being investigated and treated appropriately.”
Drive-thru pharmacy for Lyme disease treatment with doxycycline?
The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) guidelines advise that patients receive a single 200 mg dose of doxycycline after a tick bite to prevent Lyme disease. The International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society (ILADS) opposes that recommendation. Nevertheless, a pharmacist-run clinic within the Veterans Health Administration implemented IDSA’s single-dose Lyme disease treatment with doxycycline as a post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) following a tick bite.
Lyme disease can lead to long-term sequelae
How bad is Lyme disease? As the number of cases continues to rise, a recent review by Mac and colleagues entitled “Long-term sequelae and health-related quality-of-life associated with Lyme disease: A systematic review”¹ finds that Lyme disease can often lead to poor outcomes. This should come as no surprise to the many patients already suffering from chronic illness due to Lyme disease.
Lyme disease case definition misused. Perspective.
A recent article “Evaluating the Potential Misuse of the Lyme Disease Surveillance Case Definition,” by Perea and colleagues [1] highlights a concern that I have raised in previous blog posts. That is, are doctors incorrectly relying on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) surveillance definition when evaluating and diagnosing patients?
Lyme disease and double vision
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.
Looking for a Lyme doctor?
Lyme disease patients with a tick bite in an endemic area can exhibit an erythema migrans rash, 7th nerve palsy, heart block, meningitis, or Lyme arthritis. But, if a person lacks these early finding or develop chronic manifestations of Lyme disease or co-infections may find it difficult to find a doctor experienced in treating chronic manifestations of Lyme disease.
