HEALTH - LYME DISEASELyme disease infection is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, which is found in small animals like mice. Ixodes ticks (also called black-legged or deer ticks) that feed on these animals can then transmit Borrelia burgdorferi to people through tick bites. Ticks are small and can be hard to see. Immature ticks, or nymphs, are about the size of a poppy seed; adult ticks are about the size of a sesame seed. It's important to know and watch for symptoms of Lyme disease because ticks are hard to find and it's easy to overlook a tick bite in fact, many people who get Lyme disease don't remember being bitten. The good news is that most tick bites don't result in Lyme disease.
Symptoms
The rash usually has a characteristic "bull's-eye" appearance, with a central red spot surrounded by clear skin that is ringed by an expanding red rash. It also can appear as an expanding ring of solid redness. It may be warm to the touch and usually is not painful or itchy. The rash might be more difficult to see on people with darker skin tones, where it can look like a bruise. The rash usually resolves in about a month. Along with the rash, a person may have flu-like symptoms such as swollen lymph nodes, fatigue, headache, and muscle aches. Left untreated, symptoms of the initial illness may go away on their own. But in some people, the infection can spread to other parts of the body. Symptoms of this stage of Lyme disease usually appear within several weeks after the tick bite, even in someone who has not developed the initial rash.
A person might feel very tired and unwell, or have more areas of rash that aren't at the site of the bite. Lyme disease can affect the heart, leading to an irregular heart rhythm or chest pain. It can spread to the nervous system, causing facial paralysis (Bell's palsy), or tingling and numbness in the arms and legs. It can start to cause headaches and neck stiffness, which may be signs of meningitis. The last stage of Lyme disease can occur if the early stages were not detected or appropriately treated. Symptoms of late Lyme disease can appear anytime from weeks to years (average of 6 months) after an infectious tick bite, and in children is almost always in the form of arthritis, particularly in the knee or other large joints.
Treatment
Lyme disease is usually treated with a 2- to 4-week course of antibiotics. Cases that are diagnosed quickly and treated with antibiotics almost always have a good outcome. A person should be feeling back to normal within several weeks after beginning treatment.
More Information
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