Symptoms of Lyme Disease- ALDF-2007

Hi again all,
I hope everyone had a great Christmas and is looking to a Happy and Healthy New Year. My Lyme friends know how important it is to be healthy, or at least, feel healthy. I thought I would familiarize those of you who may not know what the symptoms of Lyme disease are with this excerpt from the website of the American Lyme Disease Foundation. It is a great website for those of you wishing more info on Lyme disease. I thought for my friends who stopped by to purchase or get more information on some of the great web products I have on this site, might like to know a liitle more about why this disease makes their friends so miserable.I hope this educates!

Thanks for stopping by!
Rick Bowman

Symptoms The spirochetal agent of Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdoferi, is transmitted to humans through a bite of a nymphal stage deer tick Ixodes scapularis (or Ixodes pacificus on the West Coast). The duration of tick attachment and feeding is a key factor in transmission. Proper identification of tick species and feeding duration aids in determining the probability of infection and the risk of developing Lyme disease.

The early symptoms of LD can be mild and easily overlooked. People who are aware of the risk of LD in their communities and who do not ignore the sometimes subtle early symptoms are most likely to seek medical attention and treatment early enough to be assured of a full recovery.

An EM rash generally has the following characteristics:

Usually (but not always) radiates from the site of the tickbite
Appears either as a solid red expanding rash or blotch, OR a central spot surrounded by clear skin that is in turn ringed by an expanding red rash (looks like a bull's-eye)
Appears an average of 1 to 2 weeks (range = 3 to 30 days) after disease transmission
Has an average diameter of 5 to 6 inches
(range = 2 inches to 2 feet)
Persists for about 3 to 5 weeks
May or may not be warm to the touch
Is usually not painful or itchy
EM rashes appearing on brown-skinned or sun-tanned patients may be more difficult to identify because of decreased contrast between normal skin tones and the red rash. A dark, bruise-like appearance is more common on dark-skinned patients.

Ticks will attach anywhere on the body, but prefer body creases such as the armpit, groin, back of the knee, and nape of the neck; rashes will therefore often appear in (but are not restricted to) these areas. Please note that multiple rashes may, in some cases, appear elsewhere on the body some time after the initial rash, or, in a few cases, in the absence of an initial rash.

Around the time the rash appears, other symptoms such as joint pains, chills, fever, and fatigue are common, but they may not seem serious enough to require medical attention. These symptoms may be brief, only to recur as a broader spectrum of symptoms as the disease progresses.

As the LD spirochete continues spreading through the body, a number of other symptoms including severe fatigue, a stiff, aching neck, and peripheral nervous system (PNS) involvement such as tingling or numbness in the extremities or facial palsy (paralysis) can occur.

The more severe, potentially debilitating symptoms of later-stage LD may occur weeks, months, or, in a few cases, years after a tick bite. These can include severe headaches, painful arthritis and swelling of joints, cardiac abnormalities, and central nervous system (CNS) involvement leading to cognitive (mental) disorders.

The following is a checklist of common symptoms seen in various stages of LD:

Localized Early (Acute) Stage:

Solid red or bull's-eye rash, usually at site of bite

Swelling of lymph glands near tick bite

Generalized achiness

Headache

Early Disseminated Stage:

Two or more rashes not at site of bite

Migrating pains in joints/tendons

Headache

Stiff, aching neck

Facial palsy (facial paralysis similar to Bell's palsy)

Tingling or numbness in extremities

Multiple enlarged lymph glands

Abnormal pulse

Sore throat

Changes in vision

Fever of 100 to 102 F

Severe fatigue

Late Stage:

Arthritis (pain/swelling) of one or two large joints

Disabling neurological disorders (disorientation; confusion; dizziness; short-term memory loss; inability to concentrate, finish sentences or follow conversations; mental "fog")

Numbness in arms/hands or legs/feet
Diagnosis
If you think you have LD symptoms you should see your physician immediately. The EM rash, which may occur in up to 90% of the reported cases, is a specific feature of LD, and treatment should begin immediately.

Even in the absence of an EM rash, diagnosis of early LD should be made on the basis of symptoms and evidence of a tick bite, not blood tests, which can often give false results if performed in the first month after initial infection (later on, the tests are more reliable). If you live in an endemic area, have symptoms consistent with early LD and suspect recent exposure to a tick, present your suspicion to your doctor so that he or she may make a more informed diagnosis.

If early symptoms are undetected or ignored, you may develop more severe symptoms weeks, months or perhaps years after you were infected. In this case, the CDC recommends using the ELISA and Western-blot blood tests to determine whether you are infected. These tests, as noted above, are considered more reliable and accurate when performed at least a month after initial infection, although no test is 100% accurate.

If you have neurological symptoms or swollen joints your doctor may, in addition, recommend a PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) test via a spinal tap or withdrawal of synovial fluid from an affected joint. This test amplifies the DNA of the spirochete and will usually indicate its presence.(American Lyme Disease Foundation Website-2007)