Lyme disease: Serious tick-borne infection that can turn fatal

Lyme disease, a supposedly rare disease in India, is caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi. It is a tick-borne disease that is transmitted by Ixodes tick. It is carried by mice, squirrels, birds, and mostly other small animals. Reportedly, 3000-5000 people in India suffer from the disease. It is very common in the United States. A study, by US researchers, published in PLOS Pathogens has found the genes that trigger severe symptoms in the disease. For the study, a total of 299 Lyme disease patients, from the northeastern and midwestern U.S., and central Europe, have been studied.

The researchers found specific proteins that accelerated the ability of the infection to spread. The proteins exist on the surface of the bacteria and prompt the infection to spread through the blood to affect other tissues and organs. “The bacteria may go to the nervous system, causing neurological Lyme disease, or if it goes to the joints, it can cause Lyme arthritis. Dissemination is a watershed event because it could mean the difference between a mild and severe case," Dr. Jacob Lemieux, from Massachusetts General Hospital and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and first author of the study told TIME.

As per reports, only up to 5,000 Lyme disease cases are seen in India. Many studies attribute this to lack of awareness around the disease. "Due to its varied clinical manifestations and low index of suspicion among clinicians, the disease mostly goes undetected. Hence, the actual extent of the disease is not known in India," says a 2022 report published in the journal Medical Journal Armed Forces India. " The presence of Ixodes species of ticks has been reported from the Himalayan region of India; however, as of date, no vector species has so far been incriminated in the transmission of LB in India. There is also no information regarding the animal reservoirs or the circulating Borrelia genospecies complex in India," the report adds.

Lyme disease presents more than 300 symptoms and is said to be a "great imitator". Cardiac complication associated with Lyme disease was found in a patient from Bengaluru, Karnataka. A 2014 study on a 43-year-old male who presented with complete heart block revealed the effect of Lyme disease on heart health. The man had "abdominal bloating, epigastric discomfort radiating to back, and dyspnea." He was a non-smoker and did not consume drugs or alcohol. Cardiac deaths due to Lyme has been reported in the US as well.

Lyme disease symptoms show 3 to 30 days after the tick bite. The common symptoms to watch out for are fever, chills, headache, fatigue, muscle and joint aches, and swollen lymph nodes may occur in the absence of a rash. In the study, the scientists extracted biopsies of the rashes on the skin. Bullseye-shaped rashes are a hallmark sign of the infection; these are also known as Erythema migrans.

Erythema migrans happens in up to 80% of the individuals who get infected with Lyme disease. The rashes are visible after about 7 days from the bite and start at the site of the bite. It feels warm and is not itchy. It grows up to 12 inches.

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