Increased Risk of Lyme Disease for Cat Owners

To the Editor: In attempting to determine the cause of Lyme disease in the mid-1970s, Dr. Steere and colleagues found that significantly more patients owned cats than did their unaffected neighbors. 1 The spirochetal etiologic agent Borrelia burgdorferi and tick vector Ixodes dammini are now known, 2 , 3 but the relation between cases of Lyme disease and cat ownership has not been clearly defined. We have observed how the ownership of cats can result in an increased risk of acquiring Lyme disease. In May 1986, we examined two domestic cats for unattached ticks when they entered their home in Armonk, Westchester County, New . . . No extract is available for articles shorter than 400 words.