Lyme Disease Stats and Facts

FACTS

1. You can get many tick-borne diseases from one tick bite.
2. The longer a tick is attached, the greater the risk of disease.
3. Lyme disease is a clinical diagnosis based on symptoms, history and exam.
4. You can test negative & still have Lyme or other tick-borne diseases.
5. According to the CDC surveillance criteria, an erythema migrans (EM) rash in an endemic area, means Lyme disease.
6. In a non-endemic area, rash requires a positive test.
7. Not everyone who contracts Lyme disease gets a rash.
8. Lyme symptoms can develop days or months after a tick bite.
9. Lyme patients often get worse before getting better while on treatment (Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction).
10. Lyme can cause death.

STATS

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) receives reports of approximately 30,000 cases of Lyme disease annually in the United States.
• The CDC recommends a two-tiered blood test to spot antibodies against the B. burgdorferi bacteria.
• A 2014 survey of more than 3,000 chronic Lyme disease patients, conducted by LymeDisease.org, revealed that over 40% were currently unable to work because of LD.
• During 2008–2015, a total of 275,589 cases of Lyme disease were reported to CDC (208,834 confirmed and 66,755 probable). Most cases continue to be reported from states with high incidence in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, and upper Midwest regions. In contrast, case counts have increased in states that neighbor those with high incidence. Demographic characteristics associated with confirmed cases were similar to those described previously, with a slight predominance among males and a bimodal age distribution with peaks among young children and older adults.