Symptoms of Lyme Disease

Definition.

Lyme disease is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected ticks. It is an infectious, tick-borne disease. This is caused by the Borrelia spirochete, a gram-negative microorganism.

History of Lyme Disease.

Generally, lyme disease is believed to have first been observed around Lyme, Connecticut, in 1975. Before 1975, it went by the names of tick-borne meningopolyneuritis, Garin-Bujadoux, Bannwarth Syndrome, or sheep tick fever.

The first documentation of the disease was as a skin rash, in Europe, in 1883. As time passed, researchers identified additional features of the disease. This included an unidentified bacterium, which was treatable with penicillin. Ixodes, or wood, tick was identified as the carrier. Symptoms included the rash and others affecting the nervous system.

U. S. researchers have been aware of tick infections, since the early 1900s. For example, in 1905, there was an infection called tick relapsing fever. Soon after, the wood tick, which carries an agent causing Rocky Mountain spotted fever, was identified.

Now, the full syndrome is known as Lyme disease. However, it was not identified until a cluster of cases occurred in three towns, in southeastern Connecticut, in the U. S. These were thought to be juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. The disease got its name from two of these towns, Lyme and Old Lyme.

Cause.

The bacterium Borrelia causes Lyme disease. There are over a hundred known genomic strains. However, they are usually cultured as Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia afzelii, and Borellia garinii.

The disease is transmitted by the bite of infected ticks, to humans. Not all ticks carry or transmit the disease.

Lyme disease incorporates the transmissions of tick borne co-infections. These include Bartonella, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, and Rickettsia.

Symptoms of Lyme Disease.

The symptoms of Lyme disease are many, and include both acute and chronic. Usually, skin symptoms, arthritis, and various neurological symptoms are present. Conventional therapy uses antibiotics.

Acute (early) symptoms include:

"bull's-eye" rash

Erythema migrans is a circle, or ring, of inflamed skin. It surrounds the initial tick bite, or papular/raised rash.
fever
malaise
fatigue
headache
muscle and joint aches
sore throat
sinus infection
paralysis

This is usually associated with Lyme meningitis or Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.

From infection, to the onset of symptoms, the incubation period is usually 1-2 weeks. Sometimes, it is as long as one month. In some cases, an infected person displays no symptoms, or display only one or two symptoms. This makes diagnosis difficult.

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