Author: Dr. Daniel Cameron

The authors looked at patients admitted to their infectious disease clinic in Australia between 2014 – 2020. “Patients were included if they had debilitating symptoms suggested by either themselves or the referring clinician as being attributed to ticks.” They acknowledged that there are ill patients who have been seen at their infectious disease clinic who…

In their study, “Human attachment site preferences of ticks parasitizing in New York,” Hart and colleagues describe which body parts black-legged and lone star ticks prefer to bite.¹ They collected ticks, submitted between April and December 2020 from individuals living in New York State, along with online questionnaires indicating where the tick was attached. They…

In their article entitled “Common Neurologic Features of Lyme Disease That May Present to a Rheumatologist,” Govil et al. describe the various ways that Lyme disease can affect the brain. The authors hope to make rheumatologists aware of the most common neurologic presentations of Lyme disease.1 It is particularly important, the authors write, for rheumatologists…

In their article “Lyme neuroborreliosis with encephalitis: A rare case,” Rosendahl and colleagues describe a 74-year-old immunocompromised woman, who was admitted to the hospital with confusion, paranoid delusions, weight loss, back pains, and a history of fever and vomiting suspect of cancer and infection of unknown origin.¹ The woman had been hospitalized 4 times over…

“Although B. miyamotoi has been identified in ticks in California for more than 20 years, locally acquired human cases within the western United States have not been described [in the literature],” according to Rubio et al. In this case report, the authors describe an immunocompromised man living in California diagnosed with Borrelia miyamotoi infection.¹ The…

In their article “Supportive Oligonucleotide Therapy (SOT) as a Potential Treatment for Viral Infections and Lyme Disease: Preliminary Results,” Apostolou and colleagues describe findings from a study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of SOT in 115 patients with either Epstein–Barr (EBV), Herpes Simplex Virus or Lyme Disease.¹ Oligonucleotide was administered intravenously to the participants and…

In their study, “Impacts Over Time of Neighborhood-Scale Interventions to Control Ticks and Tick-Borne Disease Incidence,” Ostfeld and colleagues examined the effectiveness of tick control methods in 24 residential neighborhoods endemic for Lyme disease in New York.¹ The study, conducted over several years, assessed the impact of tick control system (TCS) bait boxes and Met52…

However, the authors of a new case report suggest that for some Lyme carditis patients, placement of a temporary permanent pacemaker (TPPM) may be an effective and safe alternative. In their article, “A Practical Ambulatory Approach to Atrioventricular Block Secondary to Lyme Carditis,” Aromin and colleagues describe the case of a 31-year-old man who presented…

So, how prepared are medical students to properly diagnose patients of all races and ethnicities? Do they have the diagnostic ability and confidence in making a diagnosis, such as Lyme disease, for individuals with non-white skin color? In the study, “The impact of patient skin colour on diagnostic ability and confidence of medical students,” Dodd…

Alpha-gal syndrome typically presents with abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea or vomiting. But it can also lead to swelling of the face or throat, voice changes, difficulty breathing, hives, or fainting, according to recent article “AGA Clinical Practice Update on Alpha-Gal Syndrome for the GI Clinician: Commentary,” by McGill and colleagues.¹ According to the authors, the…