Lyme Disease in 2018: What Is New (and What Is Not)

With warmer weather come the annual warnings about tick-borne infections and, in particular, about Lyme disease. There has been considerable publicity about substantial increases in the incidence of Lyme disease; however, even though the incidence of Lyme disease has increased from 2007 to 2016, there has not been a statistically significant increase in the number of reported cases of Lyme disease in the US during the most recent 4 years (2013-2016) for which data are available. Lyme disease is caused by infection with Lyme Borrelic, which include Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia garinll, and others, and are transmitted to humans through the bite of infected lxodes ticks; in the US, primarily by lxodes scapularis--the deer tick. Active infection is most appropriately diagnosed by a polymerase chain reaction assay on a blood sample. Unlike with Lyme disease, patients infected with B miyamotoi in the US typically do not have a rash, but instead present with fever in conjunction with headache, myalgia, arthralgia, and malaise/fatigue.