Though it’s a devastating chronic disease, Lyme disease confounds a large portion of the public. It’s much more than a bull’s eye rash, and with more than 35,000 reported cases of Lyme in the United States last year.The CDC estimates, based on other data, that 300,000 people are treated in the US each year for […]
On May 4, 2016, around the dinner table at an Oakland restaurant, my family shared an eerie toast: “To Lyme disease!” It sounds absurd, but let me explain. For the better part of a year (really more, now that I think about it—but we’ll save that for later), I had been chasing answers to my […]
These signs and symptoms may occur within a month after you’ve been infected: Rash. A small, red bump may appear at the site of the tick bite. This small bump is normal after a tick bite and doesn’t indicate Lyme disease. However, over the next few days, the redness may expand forming a rash in […]
Lyme disease is an infection caused by a spirochete (say “SPY-ROH-KEET”) that humans can get from the bite of an infected deer tick. The spirochete’s scientific name is Borrelia burgdorferi. Lyme disease is called “The Great Imitator” because its symptoms mimic many other diseases. It can affect any organ of the body, including the brain […]
