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Lyme disease, officially known as borreliosis, is caused by a bacterial infection from an organism called Borrelia and is most commonly caught from a black-legged tick bite. Lyme disease gets its name from a cluster of cases in three towns in southeastern Connecticut in 1975, including the towns Lyme and Old Lyme.
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In 1982, Dr. "Willy" Burgdorfer found spirochetes - a bacteria Phylum known to cause many diseases. Despite searching for the cause of spotted fever at the time, he was able to link the spirochete to the Connecticut juvenile arthritis cluster, and the infection was named Borrelia burgdorferi.
Although Lyme disease is commonly associated with a “bull’s eye” rash, this only appears in less than half of Lyme infections. Even if you never see a bull’s eye rash, you may still have contracted the infection.
If caught early, Lyme disease may be treated with antibiotics, but many people with the illness are diagnosed late. Delay in diagnosis can result in many health issues.
Although Lyme disease is commonly associated with a “bull’s eye” rash, this only appears in less than half of Lyme infections. Even if you never see a bull’s eye rash, you may still have contracted the infection.
If caught early, Lyme disease may be treated with antibiotics, but many people with the illness are diagnosed late. Delay in diagnosis can result in many health issues.
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Early localized symptoms (3 to 32 days of initial tick bite) include:
● Headache ● Muscle soreness & flu-like symptoms ● Fever ● Malaise |
There is no test that can safely "Rule Out" |
Left untreated for several weeks, additional symptoms can arise, such as:
● Facial palsy, leading to the loss of muscle tone on one or both sides of the face
● Tinnitus, or ringing in the ear
● Meningitis, which can result in severe headaches, neck stiffness, and sensitivity to light
● Inflammation of the spinal cord nerve roots, causing shooting pains that may interfere with sleep, and abnormal skin sensations
● Mild encephalitis, with symptoms including memory loss, sleep disturbances, or mood changes
● Abnormal heart rhythms such as palpitations or atrioventricular bloc
● Facial palsy, leading to the loss of muscle tone on one or both sides of the face
● Tinnitus, or ringing in the ear
● Meningitis, which can result in severe headaches, neck stiffness, and sensitivity to light
● Inflammation of the spinal cord nerve roots, causing shooting pains that may interfere with sleep, and abnormal skin sensations
● Mild encephalitis, with symptoms including memory loss, sleep disturbances, or mood changes
● Abnormal heart rhythms such as palpitations or atrioventricular bloc
After several months without treatment, borreliosis can create severe and disabling symptoms in individuals, including:
● Chronic Fatigue and debilitation.
● Permanent impairment of motor or sensory function of the lower extremities in extreme cases
● Joint pain that migrates or moves around the body
● Polyneuropathy, which involves shooting pains, numbness, and tingling in the hands or feet
● Memory impairment and slowed cognitive processing
● Lyme encephalopathy, which is associated with subtle cognitive difficulties, insomnia, a general sense of feeling unwell, and changes in personality
● Chronic encephalomyelitis, which can cause cognitive impairment, brain fog, migraines, balance issues, leg weakness, awkward gait, facial palsy, bladder problems, vertigo, and back pain
● Panic attacks, anxiety, sometimes accompanied by a depersonalization or derealization syndrome, where the patients begin to feel detached from themselves or from reality
● Lyme arthritis, which usually affects the knees, but can also cause pain in the ankles, elbows, wrists, hips, and shoulders
● Changes in bowel habit and gastrointestinal discomfort
● Menstrual irregularities and fertility problems
● Chronic Fatigue and debilitation.
● Permanent impairment of motor or sensory function of the lower extremities in extreme cases
● Joint pain that migrates or moves around the body
● Polyneuropathy, which involves shooting pains, numbness, and tingling in the hands or feet
● Memory impairment and slowed cognitive processing
● Lyme encephalopathy, which is associated with subtle cognitive difficulties, insomnia, a general sense of feeling unwell, and changes in personality
● Chronic encephalomyelitis, which can cause cognitive impairment, brain fog, migraines, balance issues, leg weakness, awkward gait, facial palsy, bladder problems, vertigo, and back pain
● Panic attacks, anxiety, sometimes accompanied by a depersonalization or derealization syndrome, where the patients begin to feel detached from themselves or from reality
● Lyme arthritis, which usually affects the knees, but can also cause pain in the ankles, elbows, wrists, hips, and shoulders
● Changes in bowel habit and gastrointestinal discomfort
● Menstrual irregularities and fertility problems
Unfortunately for us, borrelia are very good at surviving and hiding from the immune system and there are currently no reliable tests currently available for Lyme disease. In fact, despite there being seven different types of borrelia that are known to cause Lyme disease, current testing methods look for just a single strain.
#NotJustLyme - Other Tick-Borne Infections
Above: The American Dog Ticks transmit human disease that can cause fevers, muscle aches, loss of appetite, and inflammation around the lining of the brain (meningitis). The treatment is not given to kids unless an accurate diagnosis is made. Below: These conditions are also carried by west coast ticks:
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Although ticks are most commonly associated with Lyme disease, ticks carry a multitude of other infections as well.
In fact, the American Dog Tick (the most common carrier of borrelia) also transmits many other types of disease-causing bacteria. Unfortunately, the common blot test for Lyme disease also does not test for other common tick-borne co-infections, including devastating animal-to-human "granulocytic anaplasmosis" diseases such as: ● Human monocytic ehrlichiosis, most commonly resulting in fever, headache, malaise, and muscle aches, and septic shock, with severity ranging from mild to life-threatening ● Human ewingii ehrlichiosis, with symptoms including fever, headache, myalgias, and malaise. And laboratory tests may reveal thrombocytopenia, leukopenia, and even liver damage. ● Human granulocytic anaplasmosis, which can cause fever, headache, weight loss, abdominal pain, leucopenia, thrombocytopenia, temporary loss of motor skills, and mild injury to the liver. |
Babesiosis - A Chronic Fatigue Infection
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Similar to other tick-borne diseases, the Genus of babesia parasites include many different types, including Babesia microti, Babesia duncani (who's geographic distribution is rapidly spreading through the eastern USA and north through Canada), Babesia canis, Babesia divergens and emerging strains that are not yet characterized.
Babesia is not a bacterial infection, but rather a 'protozoan' parasite that infects red blood cells, similar to malaria. Babesia can be transmitted from a variety of ticks, may also is known to cause disease in animals. If suspected early, it can be detected with a blood smear test; however left untreated can result in serious illness (in extreme cases even death). |
Signs of infection with Babesia microti usually arise one to eight weeks after a bite from an infectious tick, and the severity of infections varies.
For 25% of cases in adults and 50% of cases in children, the disease is asymptomatic or mild with flu-like symptoms and little else. However, some people may also experience irregular fevers, chills, headaches, general lethargy, pain, and malaise.
Common mild symptoms include:
Splenectomized patients and the elderly are more susceptible to extreme illness. In hospitalized cases, anemia may result from bursting of red blood cells. However the predominant incidence of cases go missed due to mild yet impairing symptoms.
Having multiple tick-borne infections at once can also lead to heightened new symptoms, and babesiosis is the #1 co-infection with borrelia, Lyme disease.
For 25% of cases in adults and 50% of cases in children, the disease is asymptomatic or mild with flu-like symptoms and little else. However, some people may also experience irregular fevers, chills, headaches, general lethargy, pain, and malaise.
Common mild symptoms include:
- Sleep Disturbance
- Brain Fog
- Malaise
- Tingling of the extremities (Carpal Tunnel-like symptoms), Nerve Pain
- Chronic Fatigue-like Syndrome
- Memory Problems
- Air Hunger.
Splenectomized patients and the elderly are more susceptible to extreme illness. In hospitalized cases, anemia may result from bursting of red blood cells. However the predominant incidence of cases go missed due to mild yet impairing symptoms.
Having multiple tick-borne infections at once can also lead to heightened new symptoms, and babesiosis is the #1 co-infection with borrelia, Lyme disease.
There are many other tick-borne diseases that infect humans including:
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Tularemia aka "Rabbit Fever"
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Mycoplasma
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Bartonella
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