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"The Great Imitator": This disease disguises itself as others and is very difficult to diagnose
Sometimes a trip to nature can lead to a significant health challenge - Lyme disease, transmitted by parasitic bites, is a very challenging disease to diagnose.
How is it identified and what are the treatment methods?
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Lyme disease
Ticks
Dr. Sivan Mercer
Monday, 03 May 2021, 07:49 Updated: 08:29
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The rash typical of Lyme disease has the shape of a target circle.
Rash on the leg (Photo: ShutterStock)
May marks World Lime Awareness Month.
The disease, which is almost unspoken, recently came under the spotlight after supermodel Bella Hadid shared with her 40 million followers on Instagram ways to treat the disease she suffers from.
Like Bella, other celebrities have shared in the past that they suffer from the disease, including: actress and comedian Amy Schumer, pop star Justin Bieber, Hollywood actors Ben Stiller and Alec Baldwin and singer Avril Levine.
Lyme disease was first documented in the 1970s in the Connecticut town of Lyme, hence its name.
It is the most common parasitic disease in Europe and the United States, but is much less common in Israel.
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To the full article
How do you get Lyme disease?
Lyme disease is an infectious disease that is transmitted through parasitic bites (usually ticks) and is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi.
The parasites are usually found in hidden places like the scalp, armpits and groin.
After infection, the bacterium is also found in the patient's body fluids, but there is no evidence that Lyme disease can spread to another person through sneezing, coughing or kissing.
The parasite should be present on the skin for at least 36 hours to infect.
Tick inside the skin (Photo: ShutterStock)
The parasite must be present on the skin for at least 36 hours to transmit the infection.
Wooded areas are more prone to infection, so people who live or spend time in these areas are more likely to get this disease.
However, sometimes the infectious parasite passes another stop on the way - in our pets.
Those who raise animals at home that visit wooded areas have a higher risk of contracting Lyme disease, through fleas and ticks that come from pets.
People with Lyme disease may develop different symptoms and different levels of severity.
Symptoms include headaches, chills, fatigue, muscle aches and swollen lymph nodes.
In severe cases, facial paralysis may also develop.
Later diagnoses can be complicated - especially if the patient has never noticed the tick bite.
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This is also why the disease is also known as the "great mimic" - because its symptoms usually "mimic" other health conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, multiple sclerosis and others.
Getting a proper diagnosis of Lyme disease can be challenging because most tests are not unequivocal, and can lead to prolonged suffering of weeks, months and sometimes even years until the correct diagnosis and appropriate treatment for the patient.
Common symptoms of Lyme disease:
Flat, circular rash (red oval)
tiredness
Joint pain and swelling
Muscle aches
Headache
Heat
Swollen lymph nodes
Sleep Disorders
Difficulty concentrating
After she became ill with it, many more people developed awareness of Lyme disease.
Model Bella Hadid (Photo: GettyImages)
Lyme disease is best treated in its early stages, so a simple antibiotic treatment given orally for 10-14 days is enough to eliminate the infection, but it may take weeks or months for all symptoms to go away.
Between ten and twenty percent of patients with Lyme disease will suffer from "post-Lyme syndrome", whose symptoms may include: fatigue, difficulty sleeping, joint and muscle pain, swelling, difficulty concentrating, short-term memory problem and speech problems.
3 stages of the disease
Early-
onset
local disease:
Symptoms usually appear one to two weeks after the parasite bite. One of the earliest signs of the disease is a rash in the shape of a target circle. The rash is usually painless or itchy, and it can appear with or without viral or flu-like systemic symptoms. Other common symptoms at this stage of Lyme disease include: chills, fever, swollen lymph nodes, sore throat, changes in vision, fatigue, muscle aches, headaches.
Disease in early stages:
Early stages of spread occur from a few weeks to months after the parasite is bitten.
This is a general bad feeling, and a rash may appear in different areas of the bite site.
This stage of the disease is mainly characterized by systemic infection, i.e. the spread of the infection to other areas of the body.
Symptoms can include: lesions, arrhythmias, neurological conditions such as numbness, tingling, facial and paralytic nerve paralysis, and meningitis.
Sometimes there is an overlap in the symptoms of the first two stages of the disease.
If caught early, antibiotic treatment will eliminate the infection of Lyme disease.
Woman swallows a pill (Photo: ShutterStock)
Lyme disease in advanced stages:
Lyme disease in its advanced stages occurs when the infection is not treated in the early stages, and it can occur months or years after the initial bite.
The symptoms that characterize this stage include: arthritis, neurological disorders that can cause short-term memory loss, difficulty concentrating, brain fogging, shortness of speech, sleep disorders and numbness in the limbs.
How is Lyme disease diagnosed?
Diagnosis of Lyme disease begins with a review of the patient's medical history, which includes a search for reports of parasitic or residential bites in an area prone to infection.
The doctor will also perform a physical examination to look for a rash or other symptoms typical of Lyme disease.
Prevention of infection
Ways to prevent Lyme disease mainly include reducing the risk of parasite bites.
When going on nature walks - it is recommended to wear long pants and long-sleeved shirts.
Insect repellent should be used (a preparation containing 10% DEET will provide two hours of protection).
Check small children and pets and make sure there are no parasites on them.
When a parasite is encountered, it should be removed with tweezers only, so as not to sting the fingers.
Dr. Sivan Mercer is an expert in dermatology, aesthetics and laser
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