Lyme Disease Research Paper

The epidemiology of Lyme disease

Causes of the disease Lyme disease is caused by the spirochete bacteria Borrelia burgdorferi.

History of the disease

In the 1970’s children living in Lyme, Connecticut and two other neighboring towns started to show rheumatoid arthritis. Because of how strange this was researchers started to look for a causing agent looking at everything including germs, and found a pattern looking at where these kids lived. Considering the children’s initial symptoms started typically during the summer which is when ticks are their peak they turned their eyes to deer ticks.

Some of the children treated reported having been bit by a tick before the rash develop. By the mid 1970’s researchers had named this new disease Lyme disease and began describing the signs and symptoms in order to help physicians diagnosing patients. Still, it was not until 1981 when a researcher from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) at the Rocky

It is documented the tick bite must be in place for at least 36-48 hours in order for the bacteria to be transmitted to its host. Deer ticks go through four stages of life, and in between stages they must a blood feeding. During the first two stages, eggs and larvae, deer ticks feed of mice and other rodents, which unfortunately are prime reservoirs for the Lyme disease bacteria. Later on, during the next two stages, nymphs and adults, they mostly feed on white-tailed deer, but this is when they become a danger to humans. They can’t fly or jump so they just basically wait on the grassy areas for a new host, so if you happen to walk by at the right time, especially with exposed skin, you could become it. The exposed skin makes it easier for the ticks to attach. Pets like cats and dogs have also been known to carry the ticks into your