Lyme Disease

Lyme Disease

Early in the twentieth century, the picturesque countryside surrounding Old Lyme, Connecticut, was, as one artist put it, a landscape waiting to be painted.

Today, much of the landscape is still pastoral, but within this alluring scenery lurks an insidious danger unheard of when Old Lyme was a turn-of-the-century art mecca. The trouble was recognized in the early 1970s, when a group of children in Old Lyme who lived near wooded areas developed puzzling arthritis-like symptoms. It took researchers seven years and the dissection of thousands of minuscule prime suspects to unravel the mystery. But when they did, the town earned a dubious distinction. It became notorious for being the site of the first outbreak of Lyme disease, a serious infectious condition spread to humans by deer ticks.

Although southern Connecticut still has the highest incidence of Lyme disease in the United States, more than 99,000 cases of the ailment have been reported nationwide since 1982, making it the most common tick-borne disease in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The disease is caused by a bacterial infection that is spread by the bite of infected deer ticks, tiny reddish-brown eight-legged bugs that can be no bigger than a poppy seed. The more time you spend outdoors in the wooded, brushy, and grassy areas that these ticks prefer, the greater your risk of contracting the disease, says Edwin J. Masters, M.D., primary-care physician and Lyme disease expert in Cape Giardeau, Missouri.

Typically, in its initial stages, Lyme disease looks an awful lot like the flu, causing chills, fatigue, muscle and joint pain, fever, and headache. About 60 to 80 percent of people also develop a red, round rash around the bite within 30 days. The center of this rash can become clear as it gets larger and can begin to resemble a bull’s-eye.

If detected early, Lyme disease can be cured with antibiotics. If untreated, the disease can lead to a multitude of severe complications, including arthritis, memory loss, walking difficulties, high blood pressure, and heart problems. Although seniors are at no greater risk of getting Lyme disease than other age groups, they tend to get sicker when they do get it, says Anthony L. Lionetti, M.D., an internist in Hammonton, New Jersey, and a medical consultant to the Lyme Disease Foundation in Hartford, Connecticut.

Here are a few ways you can protect yourself from Lyme and other tick-borne diseases.

Try This First

Be fashion conscious. When you are walking in tick-infested areas, wear light-colored clothing. It will make it easier for you to spot any ticks, Dr. Lionetti says. Wear a hat, a long-sleeved shirt, and long pants. Tuck your shirt into your pants and your pant legs into your socks so ticks can’t crawl under your clothing. Wearing calf-high rubber boots also may discourage ticks from latching on to you.

Other Wise Ways

Eliminate the loading zones. While properly clothed and wearing gloves, clear brush, cut tall grass, and remove leaves around your house and at the edge of gardens, Dr. Lionetti urges. Ticks lurk in these shady, moist areas, waiting to attach themselves to anything that happens to brush by. So if you eliminate the unkempt places in your yard, you’ll greatly lessen the chance that you’ll be a tick’s next meal.

Take a detour. If you can, avoid walking through grassy, wooded, or marshy areas, especially during May, June, and July when ticks are the most active, Dr. Masters says. A short stroll in a meadow or even on shaggy roadside grass can increase your risk of getting bitten. If you must go through a tick-prone area, walk in the middle of well-established trails so you’ll be less likely to brush up against vegetation.

Give clothing a good scrubbing. Wash your clothes in hot soapy water and dry them in a hot dryer immediately after you finish any outdoor activity, Dr. Lionetti says. The heat will kill any ticks hidden in your shirt sleeves, socks, or pants before they have a second chance to bite you.

Give yourself a once-over. Do a complete body check immediately after gardening, walking, or other outdoor activities in tick-infested areas, Dr. Lionetti says. Disrobe, and be sure to check your hairline, ears, behind your knees, armpits, and groin areas, where ticks like to hide. Give your pets a thorough once-over as well.

Evict them. If you find a tick attached to your body, remove it immediately, Dr. Lionetti says. It can take up to 24 hours of feeding for an infected tick to transmit enough bacteria into your system to cause Lyme disease. So prompt removal can prevent you from becoming sick. Here’s how to safely get a tick off your body.

• Grasp the tick with a pair of tweezers as close as possible to its mouth (the part that is imbedded in your skin).

• Pull straight back with a slow, steady force. Avoid jerking.

• Avoid crushing or squeezing the tick. When it is squeezed, a tick acts like a tiny syringe, injecting a dose of bacteria into your bloodstream.

• After removing the tick, wash the bite with warm soap and water to disinfect it.

• Place the removed tick into a small tightly sealed container. If symptoms develop during the next 30 days, take the tick with you when you see your doctor. The tick may help your doctor identify the problem.