Lyme Disease

In the early 1970s, a mysterious clustering of arthritis occurred among children in Lyme, Connecticut, and surrounding towns. Medical researchers soon recognized the illness as a distinct disease, which they called Lyme disease. They subsequently described the clinical features of Lyme disease, established the usefulness of antibiotic therapy in its treatment, identified the deer tick as the key to its spread, and isolated the bacterium that caused it. Lyme disease is still mistaken for other …

…blunt tweezers near the "head" of the tick until it releases its hold on the skin. To lessen the chance of contact with the bacterium, try not to crush the tick's body or handle the tick with bare fingers. Swab the bite area thoroughly with an antiseptic to prevent bacterial infection. Although Lyme disease poses many challenges, they are challenges the medical research community is well equipped to meet. New information on Lyme disease is