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Important Facts You Should Know About Lyme Disease
Author : Danica Reynes
Submitted : 2012-01-16 18:14:34 Word Count : 747 Popularity: 4
Tags: symptoms of Lyme Disease, Lyme symptoms, signs of Lyme, Lyme Disease Blog
Key facts you need to know about Lyme disease to keep you safe and protected include the nature and cause of Lyme disease, its symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, long term effects, and its prevention.
Lyme disease causes long term health problems that can affect your future. Gaining information pertaining to Lyme disease can help you in staying clear of it, diagnosing it early, as well as in getting proper treatment for it. Here are a few critical tips you must be aware of regarding Lyme disease:
Nature and cause of Lyme Disease
Lyme disease is an infection transmitted to human beings through a bite of an infected tick. The cause is a bacteria known as the Borrelia burgdorferi. It enters your body when you are bitten and spreads to your brain, muscles, heart, and more. Lyme disease gets its name from Lyme Connecticut, where it was first identified after several children became ill.
Symptoms of Lyme Disease
You may not show any signs of Lyme disease until it has reached the later stage. There is a delay of anywhere from several weeks to a month after the tick bite before the onset of symptoms. These symptoms include a crimson rash appearing in a circular pattern around the tick bite site. With Lyme disease you will feel much as if you were coming down with the flu In advanced stages symptoms may include swelling of the lymph glands, as well as numbness in the lower extremities. Other more serious complications will later occur if Lyme disease is not immediately diagnosed and treated.
The Lyme Disease diagnosis
Once you begin to experience symptoms of Lyme disease, and you are sure that you have been bitten by a tick, don t waste any time getting in touch with your doctor for an accurate diagnosis. When first visiting the doctor, he or she will look for any signs of a rash where the tick bite is. If you ve been bitten by a tick but experience flu like symptoms without a rash, your doctor will most likely conduct a blood test approximately two to five weeks after you ve been bitten in order to determine whether you ve developed Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria antibodies. As your immune system is going to respond to the bacterial infection only after a couple of weeks to five weeks time, there is no point in conducting earlier blood tests.
Lyme Disease Treatment
Once it has been determined that the patient has Lyme disease, the appropriate physician will provide the patient with a prescription to help cure the disease. Antibiotics like amoxicillin, doxycycline and cefuroxime axetil usually treat Lyme disease if the medicines are taken early in the diseases progression, no more than three or four weeks after catching it. In severe cases, a combination of antibiotics may be intravenously administered for faster relief.
Long term effects and complications of Lyme Disease
If Lyme disease is not diagnosed and treated immediately, you will experience more serious complications that will affect your heart and your nervous system. Some of the possible symptoms are congestive heart failure, irregular heart beat, loss of memory, meningitis, numbness in arms and legs, paralysis of the face(also known as Bell s Palsy) etc. Chronic arthritis and inflammation of the eyes might also occur.
Avoiding Lyme Disease
To prevent contracting Lyme disease, use the advice that follows:
* When camping, wear long sleeved shirts, long pants preferably tucked in, and a hat.
* Keep in mind that ticks can be found in wooded areas and meadows, so take care to avoid these areas during tuck season (late spring through early fall).
* Apply bug spray containing DEET to reduce the risk of tick bites.
* Always be on the lookout for ticks when you are outdoors or right after you come in from doing something outside. The only way the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria can enter your system is if the tick has been attached for at least 24 hours, which makes it imperative to rid yourself of ticks as soon as possible.
The possibility of Lyme disease should not keep you from going hiking or having fun outdoors. However, some ticks do carry Borrlia burgdorferi. It is important that you know how to prevent the infection. Investigate the symptoms, and consult your doctor immediately if you notice any problems.
Author's Resource Box
To find out more facts about the symptoms of Lyme Disease, look at http://www.lymediseaseblog.com/lyme-disease-symptoms/.
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