FACTS

• You can get many tick-borne diseases from one tick bite.
• The longer a tick is attached, the greater the risk of disease.
• Lyme disease is a clinical diagnosis based on symptoms, history, and exam.
• You can test negative & still have Lyme or other tick-borne diseases.
• CDC criteria are for surveillance purposes, not diagnosis.
• According to the CDC surveillance criteria, an erythema migrants (EM) rash in an endemic area, means Lyme disease.
• In a non-endemic area, rash requires a positive test.
• Not everyone who contracts Lyme disease gets a rash.
• Lyme symptoms can develop days or months after a tick bite.
• Lyme patients often get worse before getting better while on treatment (Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction).
• Lyme bacterium can cross the placenta & infect the fetus, which may result in fetal death & its DNA has been found in breast milk.
• Lyme can cause death.

STATS

• Lyme disease is the most commonly reported tick-borne disease in the United States. More than 22,500 confirmed and 7,500 probable cases of Lyme disease were reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) receives reports of approximately 30,000 cases of Lyme disease annually in the United States.
• However, the organization estimates that about 300,000 people contract the illness each year. A variety of factors contribute to this significant disparity—but a dearth of reliable diagnostic tests is a key part of the problem.
• More than 3,000 chronic Lyme disease patients, conducted by LymeDisease.org, revealed that over 40% were currently unable to work because of LD.
• A total of 275,589 cases of Lyme disease were reported to CDC (208,834 confirmed and 66,755 probable).