As many of you know I am involved in advocacy of Lyme disease patients rights and awareness of this insidious disease. Please take the time to vote for the LymeCar, which is currently a top contender and has a big chance to win and spread awareness about the fastest spreading epidemic to millions in the 2010 Nascar Sprint All-Star Race -- 9 more days to vote and you can vote daily.
Toyota Racing's Sponsafy Your Ride Contest
If you think it can't happen to you or yours, think again. A Panama City man recently awoke from a Lyme induced coma. His Baseball Coach also contracted Ehrlichiosis - another tick borne infection. So, be careful, do head to toe tick checks after being in the woods paying special attention to warm dark areas of your body...nape of the neck, armpits, etc.
Lyme Crash Course- Everything you need to know in 5 minutes
Lyme disease gets its name from the town of Lyme, Connecticut, where the illness was first identified in the United States in 1975.
Lyme is caused by a corkscrew-shaped bacterium, or spirochete, called Borrelia burgdorferi. Ticks infected with the bacterium spread the disease to humans.
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The tick has a 2-year life cycle, and can infect you in any of its life stages-- larvae, nymph, and adult. In the tick's larvae stage, it is tan, the size of a pinhead, and feeds on small animals like mice. During the nymph stage, the tick is the size of a poppy seed, beige or partially transparent, and feeds on larger animals such as cats, dogs, and humans. Adult ticks are black and/or reddish and feed on large mammals such as deer, dogs, and humans.
Lyme disease is a rapidly emerging infectious disease. Since it was first recognized in the United States in 1975, reports of Lyme disease have increased substantially. Factors contributing to the rise in Lyme disease in humans is a thriving tick population and the expansion of suburbs into formerly wooded areas, which increases people's exposure to infected ticks.
The tick has a 2-year life cycle, and can infect you in any of its life stages-- larvae, nymph, and adult. In the tick's larvae stage, it is tan, the size of a pinhead, and feeds on small animals like mice. During the nymph stage, the tick is the size of a poppy seed, beige or partially transparent, and feeds on larger animals such as cats, dogs, and humans. Adult ticks are black and/or reddish and feed on large mammals such as deer, dogs, and humans.
Note: If caught right away, a 30 day or more course of antibiotics is usually sufficient. Many physicians only give a 14 day course of doxycycline and many people relapse. If the tick transmits co-infections, like Ehrlicia, etc., if caught early, you need not need to be be treated for the other diseases since they will be taken care of by your immune system. If not, and Lyme becomes disseminated, then treatment because especially difficult since these organisms work synigistically to evade the immune system.
