Huff Post article on Lyme by Dr, Leo Galland

Leo Galland, M.D.

It is time we took a serious look at Lyme disease.

If not treated early and appropriately, infection with Lyme can produce chronic disease that can cause severe pain, debilitating fatigue, reduced quality of life andneurological problems such as impaired memory and concentration.

The CDC now recognizes that more than 300,000 new infections occur every year in the U.S. Most of these infections are acquired in late spring or early summer.

Lyme disease is spreading across the country at an alarming rate. Cases are appearing not only in well-known endemic areas like the northeast, but in California and Floridaand in prairie areas of the mid-west.

Most cases of Lyme disease are caused by a bacterium called Borrelia burgdorferi (Bb), which is carried by deer ticks. Different strains of Bb may produce different patterns of illness in individual patients and deer ticks often carry other pathogenic organisms like Anaplasma (a different type of bacteria) or Babesia (a blood-borne parasite).

Read the rest of the story here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leo-galland-md/personal-health-_b_5461081.html