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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

“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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]