“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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

“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. […]

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 […]

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, […]

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 […]

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 […]

“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 […]

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 […]

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 […]