Lymes Disease 06/03/2010
 
Lyme’s Disease  

 

A few weeks back I began to feel really tired and had swollen joints.  After a few days I noticed a bull’s eye located on my body. At the urging of friends I went to an urgent care where blood was obtained and  I was diagnosed with Lyme’s Disease.

 

Lyme’s disease is spread by deer ticks, who carry the bacteria  “spirochete” in the stomachs.  Once a tick bites the host , the bacteria is transmitted through its saliva into the host. 

Signs and Symptoms

From the area where the tick bites its host, you may notice an expanding red rash that is often associated with flu like symptoms.  If not caught in time it can produce abnormalities in the joints, heart and nervous system.  

In the early stages of the illness, within days or weeks, the skin around the bite may develop a bulls eye appearance. A secondary rash  may develop, but is not always present.  The bulls eye is often accompanied by general fatigue, muscle and joint stiffness, swollen glands (lymph nodes) and headaches. 

While a simple blood test is needed to diagnose the patient with Lyme’s Disease, most physicians will start their patients on antibiotics  if more than one symptoms appears.   Blood test can take up to two weeks to be completed and can give a false- positive result.  

 

If you suspect that you have been bitten by a tick and are experiencing  any of the above symptoms, please see your doctor immediately.  The earlier they diagnose and treat the disease, he less damage it will do to your system.   
 


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