Officials warn of Lyme outbreak

Questions? Comments? Write: National Lyme Report Editor Derek Clontz. He reads and answers all e-mails, usually within minutes and always within one business day.

Editor's Note: Because Lyme disease is poorly understood and tests such as the Western Blot are inaccurate, doctors are often reluctant to diagnose the infection, putting the public at risk. Read the following report and note the "surprise" expressed by the reporter and, by implication, health officials who seemed confounded that Lyme could strike so close to home.

Public Health warns of Lyme Disease risk
Newswatch 50, New York, August 16, 2006

Jefferson County Public Health is warning Jefferson County residents of an outbreak of Lyme disease exposures occurring in Jefferson County.

In less than three months, eight cases of the disease have been reported with the “exposure episode” occurring in Jefferson County.

Public Health says this is the first time that the disease has ever been identified as being caught by someone actually in the County, although over the span of 1996 – 2004, 31 cases were reported by County residents.

Those cases were all found to have been contracted from outside the County. Previously, Lyme disease has been concentrated in the southern areas of the State and Long Island.

Now the areas are moving north, and seem to be concentrated between the Black River and St. Lawrence River.

The disease is more prevalent in the spring and summer and is contracted through the bite of infected Deer Ticks.

The ticks live in shady, moist areas at ground level, clinging to shrubs and trees eighteen to twenty four inches above the ground.

They cannot jump or fly, and must come into direct contact with passing people or animals.

Should the disease go untreated, it can cause a number of health problems including symptoms that affect the skin, nervous system, heart, and joints. The earliest symptoms can be mild and may be missed.

WrenSongFarms.Net: Organic herbs and moreIf you are bitten by a tick, remove it with tweezers and watch for a rash at the site of the bite in a “bulls-eye” patch around site that grows larger, appearing anywhere from 3 days to one month after the bite.

It will have a diameter of two to six inches and last for three to five weeks and is usually not painful or itchy, but may be warm to the touch.

If you think you may have contracted the disease, contact a doctor immediately. The disease can be treated with antibiotics but if left untreated may become a chronic condition.

Additionally, the State Health Department website has educational information about protecting yourself against Lyme disease.

Advertisement

Susan's Herbs: 12,000 herbs and supplements at your fingertips. Helping you is our business. Since 1993.

Question? Comment? What do you think? Write National Lyme Report Editor Derek Clontz . He reads and responds personally to every letter, often within minutes and always within one business day.

Copyright © 2009 4-Page Media, Inc./National Lyme Report. All rights reserved.