Report on Lyme disease Prepared for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Field Personnel

Lyme disease is an arthropod-borne, bacterial, multisystemic disease. It has assumed importance as an epidemic disease in parts of the United States and in a number of other countries as well. The primary vector of Lyme disease, Ixodes dammini, has a widespread distribution in the heavily populated...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Johnson, William A
Format: Report
Language:English
Subjects:
ADULTS
ANTIBIOTICS
ARTHRITIS
ATTACK
BORRELIA
BORRELIA BURGDORFERI
DEATH
DEER
DETERMINANTS(MATHEMATICS)
DISEASES
DISTRIBUTION
ERYTHEMA
FOOD
FUNCTIONS
HAIR
HUMANS
IXODES DAMMINI
JOINTS
LYME DISEASE
MAMMALS
Medicine and Medical Research
NUMBERS
PAIN
PARTS
PATIENTS
PESTICIDES
REDUCTION
RISK
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
SITES
SOURCES
TICKBORNE DISEASES
TICKS
UNITED STATES
WORK
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Description
Summary:Lyme disease is an arthropod-borne, bacterial, multisystemic disease. It has assumed importance as an epidemic disease in parts of the United States and in a number of other countries as well. The primary vector of Lyme disease, Ixodes dammini, has a widespread distribution in the heavily populated Midwest, Northwest, and Atlantic states, where the tick utilizes small mammals (during the nymphal stage) and deer and other larger mammals, including man (during the adult stage), as food sources. The trend toward rural living among many Americans has further placed humans at risk to attack by the tick and infection with Lyme disease. Initial symptoms of Lyme disease include erythema migraines and arthritis-like pain in the large joints. Serological techniques exist that allow fairly reliable diagnosis, and the bacterium is susceptible to a limited number of antibiotic therapies. Untreated individuals may face severe, chronic, multisystemic involvement, which may, in a few cases, terminate in death. However, most patients recover eventually, whether treated or untreated, with no permanent loss of function. The most effective preventative measures that may be taken by individuals at risk include appropriate attire while moving through wooded areas potentially infested with ticks that might carry Lyme disease and examination of the body (especially hair-covered areas) and clothing upon return from the field. Treatment with an acaricide in areas around homes and work sites provides some reduction in local tick populations.