However, many doctors are having difficulty recognising the signs. Sue Nelson, a science writer, examines the studies following her personal experience with the disease.
Ticks are blood sucking parasites that are second only to mosquitos in terms of disease transmission to humans. However, you may not feel the bite, despite the risk of infection and serious sickness.
These spider-like arachnids, with eight legs and a body as small as an apple seed, can release an anti-inflammatory chemical to conceal their feeding. This allows a slew of disease-causing germs that may have already infected the tick to freeload into your circulation.
Pathogens that may have already infected the tick are freeloading into your bloodstream.
The most well-known of these freeloaders is Borrelia burgdorferi, a spiral-shaped bacteria that causes Borreliosis or Lyme disease. It is named after the town of Lyme, Connecticut, in the United States, where it was initially found in 1975 after both children and adults reported arthritis-like symptoms.
Lyme disease, on the other hand, has many additional symptoms, which can become more diversified if not treated promptly. “It’s a type of bacteria that penetrates every tissue in the body,” explains Jack Lambert, an infectious disease consultant, professor of medicine at University College Dublin, and the creator of the Lyme Resource Centre.
