Can Lyme disease cause long term effects?

Untreated Lyme disease can cause: Chronic joint inflammation (Lyme arthritis), particularly of the knee. Neurological symptoms, such as facial palsy and neuropathy. Cognitive defects, such as impaired memory.

What are the long term effects of Lyme disease if left untreated?

Left untreated, Lyme disease can spread to joints and organs, causing significant damage. Arthritis, heart disease, and nervous system problems are common complications of untreated Lyme disease.

Can Lyme disease cause stroke like symptoms?

Introduction. Lyme neuroborreliosis is a nervous system infection caused by spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi with diverse neurological complications. Stroke due to cerebral vasculitis is a rare consequence of neuroborreliosis and has been described in just a few case reports.

What does chronic Lyme disease feel like?

These symptoms can include fatigue, joint or muscle aches, and cognitive dysfunction. They may last up to six months or longer. These symptoms can interfere with a person’s normal activities and may cause emotional distress as a result. However, most people’s symptoms improve after six months to a year.

Can Lyme mimic a stroke?

1 The causative organism, Borrelia burgdorferi, is a flagellated spirochete transmitted from small-mammal reservoirs to human beings through bites from infected ticks of the Ixodes species (com- monly known as deer ticks). Only rarely do the neurologic abnormalities of Lyme disease simulate progressive stroke.

Can Lyme disease lay dormant in your body?

Lyme disease may lead to different symptoms at different times. Symptoms may develop quickly or not until many months or years later as the spirochete can evade the immune response and remain dormant in the human host for long periods.

Do you ever fully recover from Lyme disease?

Understanding Lyme disease treatment and potential complications can help clear up your concerns. Fortunately, most people with Lyme disease recover fully after completing a course of antibiotics. Lyme disease symptoms may persist for longer, but only in rare cases.

Can Lyme disease lead to MS?

Sometimes, people who think they may have Lyme disease find out they have MS (an immune-mediated central nervous system disorder). Lyme disease as an infection can act to trigger MS attacks. This is why being seen by a neurologist specially trained to know the differences is key.

Can Lyme cause vascular issues?

The Lyme bacterium can infect all parts of the heart, including the conduction system around the atrioventricular node, the outer or inner membranes of the heart, the cardiac muscle, and more rarely, cardiac blood vessels or heart valves.

Can Lyme disease affect blood vessels?

A recent study has shown that Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme disease, spreads throughout the body by crawling along the inside wall—the endothelium—of blood vessels.

Can lymes disease flare up again?

Yes, you can get Lyme disease twice – or more. This is different from being newly infected by other tick-borne illnesses, such as Ehrlichia or Tick-Borne Relapsing Fever, which can present with Lyme-like symptoms but are actually caused by different bacteria than the Lyme disease bacteria.