Opinion article: Lyme disease is real but no epidemic

From the Montreal Gazette:

“Acute Lyme disease, of course, is very real. It is an infection caused by the bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi and gets spread to humans via bites from ticks of the Ixodes species. Adult ticks prefer to feed on white-tailed deer, but if an unassuming human happens by, they will happily latch on to the skin and feed on their host’s blood. The tick passes the bacteria to the human, who then gets sick. Fortunately, the infection can be cured with a two- to four-week course of antibiotics.

Post Lyme disease syndrome, sometimes called chronic Lyme disease, is a completely different problem. It is usually used to describe the headache, fatigue and joint pain that can persist for months after an infection is eradicated. The exact cause of these symptoms is unclear, although some of it may be residual inflammation after the infection.”

Read the full article here.