Lyme Disease Information

About Lyme Disease

Lyme disease was first studied in 1975 by Dr. Allen Steere, following a mysterious outbreak in Lyme, Connecticut of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. The relationship between rheumatoid arthritis and a disease of another name may not at first be apparent but, as discussed more fully below, Lyme disease has the ability to mimic many other diseases, making diagnosis extremely difficult.

Lyme disease is unique in that it has different forms with symptoms that are widespread and varied. Borrelia burgdorferi is a bacterial spirochete which can invade all parts of the body including the skin, joints, nervous system, muscles, cardiovascular system, the eyes, the lungs and gastrointestinal tract. It was once thought that it was only transmitted by ticks that carry bacteria which then infects any warm blooded animal it bites after, including people.

That may have been true 20 years ago, but not today. Spirochetes of Lyme disease are now in fleas, mites, and mosquitoes. Live spirochetes have been found in blood, urine, tears, semen, breast milk, and vaginal secretions. It has contaminated blood transfusions, and has been found in dairy cattle and sheep. In fact, it is theorized that person to person infection may be happening now.

No matter how the infection is transmitted, once inside the body this bacterium undergoes different transformations, changing its shape as it goes through its life cycle which makes it extremely hard to eradicate even using modern antibiotics.

Lyme disease has traditionally been thought to only be a major problem in the northeastern parts of the United States and Canada typically in areas with larger deer populations. New research has suggested that this condition is also prevalent throughout Europe and Asia as well as every state. Ninety percent of all infections have been found in Northern California, the Eastern seaboard of the United States and the North Central states such as Wisconsin.