Some of the bacteria that you encounter as the cause of many diseases in nature need a mediator (vector) to infect humans.
What is Lyme Disease?
Some fly and arthropod species can undertake this vectoring task. Borreliosis, or lyme disease, is the first of the diseases transmitted by tick bites in the United States. is a legged. Both humans and pets that have been in such areas are at risk for tick bites. Summer months and living in rural areas are among other risk factors for diseases transmitted by tick bites.
Tick bites are generally considered harmless and may not cause any symptoms other than an allergic reaction. Some ticks, on the other hand, can act as vectors in the transmission of various diseases to humans. For this reason, the armpits, groin and scalp are among the risky areas for tick bites. After a tick bite, symptoms such as pain, edema, redness, burning and itching may occur in that area. If the body's reaction to the tick bite is severe, allergic symptoms that can progress to shortness of breath, albeit rare, may occur in the person.
Lyme disease is an infectious disease caused by a bacterium called Borrelia burgdorferi. To the question of whether Lyme disease is contagious, the answer can be given that the transmission of the bacterium to humans can occur when ticks that feed on sick deer, bird and mouse blood then bite people. Ticks that are carriers of this disease are usually ticks belonging to the genus ixodes. In order for ticks to transmit Lyme disease to humans, they must be present on the skin for approximately 36 hours. your body's response and whether the disease is early or may differ depending on the late stage. Lyme disease is basically examined in 3 stages. Localized, that is, limited to the bite site, the disease stage constitutes the initial stage of this ailment. Early and late disseminated disease stages are the other stages of this disease, but care should be taken as the symptoms that occur during the course of the disease do not always progress in this way and may progress with an intertwined picture.
In approximately 70-80% of Lyme patients, the first As a symptom, redness in the bite area called erythema migrans is detected. The size of the rash can vary from 5 centimeters to 30 centimeters. Because the redness around the bite area is in the form of a bright ring and there is a pale area around it, it is called the "target board" (bull's eye) appearance.
In addition to this symptom, many other signs and symptoms may occur during the course of lyme disease:
- Weakness
- Joint pain and swelling
- Muscle pains
- Headaches
- Fever
- Lymph node enlargement
- Sleep and concentration problems
What are the Stages of Lyme Disease?
Lyme disease is basically examined in 3 stages. While the first and second stages of the disease occur in the early stages of the disease, the last stage occurs within a period of 12 months after the disease is transmitted to humans. It forms the first stage of Lyme disease. It covers the period within a period of 1-28 days following the tick bite. The rash (erythema migrans) that occurs during this period can persist for 2-3 weeks if the diagnosis is delayed and not intervened.
Second Stage The second stage of Lyme disease depends on the individual. It develops in a period of 1-3 months after infection. Neurological symptoms such as fever, headache and drowsiness, cardiac symptoms such as muscle pain, chest pain, palpitations and shortness of breath, and general weakness may occur at this stage of the disease. between. Complaints such as double vision and eye pain, apart from joint pain, may accompany other symptoms in the second stage of Lyme disease.
These symptoms may generally last for 3-5 months, but they rarely reappear after they disappear. Cognitive symptoms such as concentration and memory loss or personality changes may be added to the disease table in approximately 1 out of 5 patients, depending on the central nervous system being affected. It mainly progresses with neurological and rheumatological complaints. At the beginning of the rheumatological complaints is joint inflammation, which generally occurs due to the involvement of the knee joint.
In this stage, although rare, cardiac symptoms are important. Rhythm disturbances and temporary heart blocks are among the cardiac symptoms that may occur in the last stage of Lyme disease.
How is the Diagnosis of Lyme Disease?
After applying to health institutions, taking the patient's history, physical examination and Various blood tests form the basic steps of the diagnostic approach to Lyme disease. Lyme disease test may result in false negative results in the first week of the disease. Therefore, if the patient lives in a risky area for tick bite and Lyme disease, and if signs of tick exposure are encountered during the physical examination, other stages of diagnosis can be skipped and treated directly if deemed necessary by the physician. The reason why the tests are inconclusive in the early stages of the disease is that the basic logic of the tests is that they detect how many antibodies are formed in the person's body against this disease. In the early period, enough antibodies to be detected in the test may not have formed yet. Lyme disease test, which is performed in two stages, is detected as highly positive especially in patients with nervous system and cardiac symptoms. Lyme disease test is the examination of how much antibodies are produced by the defense system against the bacteria that cause the disease in the patient's blood using methods called EIA and IFA.
In addition to serological tests, other blood analyzes of the patient can be performed within the diagnosis of Lyme disease. Through these analyzes, changes that indicate inflammation in the body, such as increased erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and decreased number of white blood cells and platelets can be detected.
How to Treat Lyme Disease?
The treatment of Lyme disease depends on the age of the patient. and may vary depending on the stage of the disease. The basis of the treatment is antibiotic drugs that are determined to be effective against the bacteria that cause Lyme disease.
An antibiotic agent called doxycycline is used in people older than 8 years of age and in the early stage of the disease. This drug is not suitable for use in people younger than 8 years of age, pregnant or breastfeeding, due to its various side effects, so alternative antibiotic drugs such as amoxicillin and cefuroxime are used as an alternative to doxycycline in people in this group. The duration of the treatment varies between 10 and 14 days, depending on the drug used. After this treatment, the treatment is continued with prescribed antibiotic pills for a period of 2-4 weeks for people who show improvement. You can use the contact form on our website to reach us.
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