Lyme borreliosis in Europe and North America

"......the Lyme disease
spirochete, Lyme borreliosis is an expanding public health problem that

has defied our attempts to control it...."


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15938512&query_hl=1

Parasitology. 2004;129 Suppl:S191-220.

*Lyme borreliosis in Europe and North America.*

*Piesman J, Gern L.*

Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases, National Center for
Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, P.O.
Box 2087, Fort Collins, CO 80522, USA. JPiesman@xxxxxxx

Since the discovery of the Lyme disease spirochete in North America

in 1982 and in Europe in 1983, a plethora of studies on this unique
group of spirochetes that comprise Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato has
been accumulated. In an attempt to compare and contrast Lyme
borreliosis
in Europe and North America we have reviewed the biology of the
aetiologic agents, as well as the clinical aspects, diagnosis and
treatment of this disease on both continents. Moreover, we have
detailed
the ecology of the Ixodes ticks that transmit this infection and the
reservoir hosts that maintain the spirochete cycle in nature. Finally,
we have examined the transmission dynamics of the spirochete on both
continents, as well as the available prevention strategies. Although it

has been over two decades since the discovery of the Lyme disease
spirochete, Lyme borreliosis is an expanding public health problem that

has defied our attempts to control it. By comparing the accumulated
experience of investigators in North America and Europe, where the
disease is most frequently reported, we hope to advance the cause of
developing novel approaches to combat Lyme borreliosis.

PMID: 15938512 [PubMed - in process]

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