February 4, 2023
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February 3, 2023

Lyme Disease: Quick Facts

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Lyme Disease: Quick Facts

It’s the dead of summer, so you’ve probably been hearing rumblings about Lyme disease for quite some time now, especially if you’ve recently been in an area with tall grass. It’s also likely you’ve heard horror stories about Lyme, centered around people who may be suffering from secondary conditions such as brain fog for years to come because they didn’t catch the disease quick enough. Here are some useful fast facts from the CDC:

Where in the US can you get Lyme disease?

  • North-central states, mainly as Minnesota and Wisconsin
  • Northeastern and mid-Atlantic regions, spanning from northeastern Virginia to Maine
  • The West Coast, especially northern California

What should you do if you have been bitten by a tick?

  1. Remove the tick with fine-tipped tweezers ASAP.
  2. Monitor yourself: see a doctor immediately if you start feeling sick within the first few weeks of being bitten.

What are common signs of Lyme disease?

  • Body aches
  • Fever
  • Rash
  • Facial paralysis
  • Arthritis

What are the chances that you’ll get Lyme from a tick?

It depends on the type of tick that bit you, where you were at the time of said bite, and how long it was clamped onto you. Blacklegged ticks are the sole type that are able to transmit the Lyme-causing bacteria to us, and only those in “highly endemic areas” in America’s north-central and northeastern areas are generally infected with it. You should also be relieved to know a blacklegged tick has to have been attached to you for a minimum of 24 hours before it can be able to infect you with Lyme disease; this makes it important to regularly check yourself for ticks if you live in an endemic part of the US.

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