Lyme Disease And The United States - 1307 Words

Lyme Disease in Alabama Introduction In 2010 there were 2 confirmed cases of Lyme disease in Alabama, which continued to rise until 2014 with the last reported number of 64 confirmed cases for that year alone. In September 2015 the Centers for Disease Control revised their estimates indicating that it is believed that there were more than 10 times more cases in the United States than the 30,000 reported. Lyme disease is the fastest growing transmittable disease in the United States. It is hard to believe a disease this infectious was only discovered four decades ago. The History of Lyme disease Lyme disease was unknown to people in the early 1970s and may still be unknown if not for two mothers in Lyme, Connecticut. The mothers both noticed their kids and others in their town had the same symptoms and started trying to figure out what was wrong. The medical field began studying the groups symptoms to try and find a cause. By the mid 1970’s the new disease was called Lyme but no one knew what was causing it. In 1981 scientist Willy Burgdorfer who studied Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever started to study Lyme disease. He found the cause of the disease in a deer tick. He had discovered a bacterium called a spirochete. In 1982 the medical field named the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi in honor of his discovery. Threat The threat of Lyme disease is an ever growing concern especially due to the fact that late stage Lyme has no cure and early stages are hard to diagnose. TheShow MoreRelatedLyme Disease And Its Effects On The United States2030 Words   |  9 Pagesinfectious diseases in the United States. These arachnids can host a scary medley of infectious bacterium, and they are increasing at an alarming rate with one CDC graph showing their numbers have almost tripled since 1995 (Lyme Stats). Some point to greater awareness, other point to climate change, while we don’t know exactly why their reach is growing we do know we have to be wary of the diseases they carry. While not all ticks are hosts, ticks carrying the Borrelia bacteria known for causing Lyme diseaseRead MoreLyme disease, a common illness prevalent in the United States and Canada, is a bacterial infection1900 Words   |  8 PagesLyme disease, a common illness prevalent in the United States and Canada, is a bacterial infectio n caused by the bite of a â€Å"deer tick† (WebMD, 2012). A â€Å"deer tick† or Ixodes dammini, frequently carries the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi which causes Lyme disease (American Journal of Public Health, 1992). â€Å"Deer ticks† infected with this disease spread the bacteria through a bite which allows it to enter the blood stream of the host. Patients with Lyme disease often have a history of tick exposure,Read MoreLyme Disease : A Common Disease1596 Words   |  7 Pagesweakening diseases of the world can often be found crawling around in the shrubs and tall grasses of one’s backyard. It does not mean that only dirty yards have this disease but, it is found in every North Americans backyard. The disease is called Lyme disease. Lyme disease is a fairly common disease that often goes misdiagnosed in many cases. There are many misunderstandings about this disease. Causative Agent: Every disease has a causative agent. The causative agent of Lyme disease is the bacteriumRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Lyme Disease1485 Words   |  6 Pagesspreading to become the most common vector-borne disease that occurs in the Northern Hemisphere, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. This â€Å"hidden pandemic†, known as Lyme disease, is silently infecting hundreds of thousands of United States citizens each year, and numbers of new and untreated infections continue to climb as traditional treatments fail and doctors misdiagnose the condition. Spread by tick bites, Lyme disease has affected many lives and continues to infect countlessRead MoreDescriptive Epidemiological Analysis Of Lyme Disease Essay819 Words   |  4 PagesDescriptive Epidemiological Analysis of Lyme disease Lyme disease is a spirochetal infection, which is transmitted by the bite of infected Ixodes ricinus complex ticks. It is brought about essentially by Borrelia burgdorferi in the United States. Lyme disease was initially perceived clinically in 1977 as Lyme arthritis amid investigations of a group of youngsters in Connecticut who were thought to have adolescent rheumatoid joint inflammation. The etiology of Lyme disease was found to be a spirochete inRead MoreThe Causative Agent Of Lyme Disease1617 Words   |  7 Pagesweakening diseases of the world can often be found crawling around in the shrubs and tall grasses of a person’s backyard. It does not mean that only dirty yards have this disease but it is found in every North Americans backyard. The disease is called Lyme disease. Lyme disease is a fairly common disease that often goes misdiagnosed in many cases. There are many misconceptions about this disease. Causative Agent: Every disease has a causative agent. The causative agent of Lyme disease is the bacteriumRead MoreLyme Disease Is An Issue1516 Words   |  7 PagesTicked Off: Lyme Disease is an Issue What is Lyme disease, and why is it important? Lyme disease is a tick-borne disease created by bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. â€Å"The infection is primarily transmitted by Ixodes ticks, also known as deer ticks, and on the West Coast, black-legged ticks† (Lymedisease.org). It’s hard to identify the ticks because of their tiny size, similar to a poppy seed. To make that exact the female adult deer tick is about 2.7 mm in length, and the male is smaller than thatRead MoreLyme Disease : A Chronic Medical Mystery1429 Words   |  6 PagesLyme Disease: A chronic medical mystery Introduction One of the most common Tick communicable diseases plaguing the United States today is a human transferable infection called Lyme disease, which is spread by Deer Ticks Ixodes scapularis, they are small arthropods often found in wooded areas of eastern United states (Orkin.com â€Å"Deer ticks† accessed may 8 2016); transmission of the infection occurs when an contaminated deerRead MoreThe Canadian Lyme Disease Prevention1663 Words   |  7 PagesIn Canada, there are too many â€Å"false- negative† results, according to Jim Wilson, President of the Canadian Lyme disease Foundation and this standpoint is also recognized by Health Canada. (Magnotta, 2015). The human body takes several weeks for humans to create antibodies at detectable levels. This limits the detection of the various genotypes of the borrelia bacteria, from the procedures used, which in effect, is allowing late stage serology to occur. According to Dr. Ralph Hawkins, who is a GeneralRead MoreA Brief Not e On Lyme Disease And How It Affects The Body1422 Words   |  6 Pagesessay on Lyme disease, because I’ve always heard about this disease but I never really understood exactly what it was. I am one of the many people out there that are still unaware and confused about what Lyme disease really is and how it affects the body and is very interested in learning more. By researching more about what Lyme disease is I believe it would give me much more insight about the disease. This essay is a great opportunity for me to get educated and learn more about the disease and how