New research into the symptom heterogeneity of patients with post-treatment Lyme disease may serve as a framework to create targeted interventions or novel treatments for these patients.
Updated Clinical Practice Guidelines for Lyme Disease, Lyme Arthritis
A team of healthcare practitioners and researchers, spearheaded by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) and the ACR, has developed updated evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of Lyme disease. The 2020 guidelines cover a wide variety of Lyme disease manifestations, including Lyme arthritis. Linda…
Immunoassay May Help Identify Pediatric Lyme Arthritis
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—In Lyme disease-endemic areas, a C6 peptide enzyme immunoassay (EIA) test may help guide initial management of children with acute arthritis, an observational study suggests.1 “Children with Lyme disease frequently present to the emergency department with an inflamed joint,” Lise Nigrovic, MD, MPH, of Boston Children’s Hospital tells Reuters Health by email….
Lyme Arthritis: Presentation, Diagnosis & Treatment
A 52-year-old man living in greater Boston with a history of hypertension presented at our rheumatology clinic with bilateral knee pain and swelling. He had been in his usual state of health until four months earlier when he developed right knee pain and swelling without an incipient trauma, which did not improve with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory…
The Latest on Vaccinations, Leprosy & Lyme Disease
CHICAGO—Keith Winthrop, MD, MPH, professor of public health and preventive medicine at the Oregon Health & Science University School of Medicine, Portland, Ore., began the vaccination session at the 2018 ACR/ARHP Annual Meeting with a review of vaccination timing and targets. He presented a clinically relevant snapshot of the vaccines rheumatologists should consider and emphasized…
Lyme Arthritis Treatment Protocols Critical as Lyme Disease Spreads
As Lyme disease and Lyme arthritis spread to new regions in North America, physicians may ned to become aware of their signs and symptoms. Allen C. Steere, MD, says “Lyme arthritis is more complicated to treat than other manifestations of the disease.” Here are some best practices for treating Lyme arthritis…
Septic or Lyme Hip Arthritis? Rapid Lyme Diagnostics Could Avoid Unnecessary Treatment
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—In Lyme-endemic areas, synovial fluid white blood cell (WBC) count isn’t very helpful in distinguishing septic from Lyme arthritis of the hip, a new study suggests. Use of newer-generation Lyme disease diagnostics are necessary to avoid the “under- and overdiagnosis of Lyme arthritis at the time that initial management decisions must be…
Lyme Disease Spreads Through Ontario
New research highlights the current geographic areas of Ontario, Canada, associated with Lyme disease and the presence of Ixodes scapularis. The study found the ticks are expanding their range at a rate of 46–55 km/year, with several sites showing the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi, which causes Lyme disease. These findings may help target public health interventions in the areas at greatest risk…
Diagnosis, Treatment Updates for Lyme Arthritis
CHICAGO—A clustering of cases in Lyme, Conn., in 1975 led to the discovery of Lyme disease. Allen C. Steere, MD, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, investigated that outbreak, and he shared his knowledge of Lyme disease with rheumatologists gathered at the ACR’s State-of-the-Art Clinical Symposium in April. He explained that Lyme arthritis…
Long-Term Antibiotic Treatment for Lyme Disease Shows No Benefits
For people in whom symptoms of Lyme disease persist beyond the standard course of two to four weeks of antibiotic therapy, longer term antibiotic treatment provides no additional benefits beyond the shorter term course. This is the conclusion of a recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine that builds on a number…