Province worries Lyme disease is spreading into N.B.
Published Friday July 10th, 2009
The provincial government is urging people to protect themselves against Lyme disease, but so far it hasn't collected much information about the number of infected ticks in New Brunswick.
Lyme disease is a bacterial infection that's most frequently passed to humans through the bite of an infected blacklegged tick.
Ticks generally live in wooded areas and may attach themselves to humans, wildlife and pets that move past tree branches and through tall brush.
An infected person might develop a rash and could experience symptoms such as headaches, fevers, a stiff neck, fatigue, soreness in different areas of the body, joint pain and swelling. The symptoms can appear in stages and last for months or even years.
There were 878 cases of Lyme disease in Maine in 2008, an increase of 66 per cent from 2006.
New Brunswick reported only seven confirmed cases of Lyme disease between 1997-2007, but researchers believe that blacklegged ticks are spreading further into this part of the country.
Dr. Jacqueline Badcock, a consultant for zoonotic diseases with the Department of Health, said that doesn't mean people should stay out of the woods. She said anyone who enjoys the outdoors should learn about Lyme disease and take measures to protect themselves.
"You want to take some precautions, like using socks, long-sleeved clothing, insect repellents like DEET, and doing a tick check after you come out of the woods," she said.
"And, of course, if you do have any symptoms, you should immediately go see your doctor for a followup."
But if the Department of Health believes ticks and Lyme disease are spreading, why isn't it collecting specimens in the wild to measure the risk to New Brunswickers?
Badcock said the province only collects information about ticks reported to doctors and veterinarians.
She said it would take a major effort to adequately survey the entire province for ticks.
"Where would you start?" she said.
"To collect ticks in the wild, you're either doing small rodent trapping where you're actually setting up cages for mice to be in, or you're physically walking the area with a drag cloth. So it'd be pretty hard to sample the entire province."
She said there's an area near Saint John where ticks are established, and the Department of Health has been trying to increase awareness in the region about the disease.
Badcock said New Brunswick also isn't keeping track of how many tests doctors order for Lyme disease.
She said it has contacted doctors across the province to remind them to keep their eyes open for signs of the illness.
"Doctors have received a letter from the Department of Health and there is a fair bit of information on our website for physicians," she said.
"It has a lot of links to the ongoing current information on Lyme and that would include both diagnostics and treatment."
Mouth of Keswick resident Kathy White knows all about the effects of Lyme disease.
She battled fatigue, shooting pains and disorientation for 16 years before she was able to confirm she had Lyme disease.
White contracted the disease in 1990 during a trip to Cleveland, N.Y.
She fell ill soon after returning home and spent years searching for answers from physicians and specialists in New Brunswick and the United States.
White was misdiagnosed as having chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia and clinical depression. She said she wondered if she'd ever get her life back.
In 2006, she finally found a doctor in British Columbia who knew how to help her. He put her on antibiotics and she began to gradually fight her way back to good health.
White said she's glad to see the province is starting to recognize the importance of educating people about Lyme disease.
She said she hopes nobody else has to go through what she did, but she doesn't blame the physicians who tried to help her.
"It seemed like they wouldn't even accept the possibility of Lyme disease," she said.
"You were just pooh-poohed every time you brought it up. You can't really blame your (general practitioners) because they send you to the specialists. And they just don't deal with it a lot, I guess."
Now White sees a physician in Maine. She said she's still dealing with the effects of Lyme disease.
"I still have fatigue and we're trying to figure out if that's residual from the Lyme disease or something else," she said.
"Every time I have a symptom, it's in the back of my head. When you've struggled with something for so long, it's always in your mind."
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This month marks the 4-year anniversary of my battle with lyme disease. I was one of the fortunate ones who got a prompt clinical diagnosis within a week of my rash. I unfortunately was also one of the 10% of treatment failures which developed into chronic lyme. I am also fortunate that I am currently receiving proper treatment. This time my treatment is more aggressive and I am optimistic that it will be beat.
In 1988 a Canadian Epidemiological Report on Lyme Disease stated that more awareness is needed - yet today many doctors are still unaware of the complexities of lyme or even admit that it exists in areas in Canada. Lyme Disease is here and will only continue to increase as time goes by. Thank-you for helping raise the awareness on this illness. Prevention is better than a cure.
To everyone out there that doesn't yet have an answer don't give up and you must be your own advocate!!
Great article - Thanks!