ABSTRACT
Erythema migrans (EM) is the most common objective manifestation of Lyme disease, accounting for about 90% of cases. Establishing the diagnosis of EM is important because appropriate treatment with oral antibiotics at an early stage of infection with Borrelia burgdorferi results in excellent outcomes. This article includes a discussion of the epidemiology of EM and its clinical, differential, and laboratory diagnosis. The treatment of EM and the prevention of Lyme disease are also discussed.
Subject(s)
Erythema Chronicum Migrans , Animals , Arachnid Vectors/microbiology , Bites and Stings/complications , Bites and Stings/prevention & control , Diagnosis, Differential , Erythema Chronicum Migrans/diagnosis , Erythema Chronicum Migrans/drug therapy , Erythema Chronicum Migrans/epidemiology , Erythema Chronicum Migrans/history , History, 20th Century , Humans , Ticks/microbiologyABSTRACT
American medical researchers who investigated Lyme disease in the 1970s conceived of the disorder as a categorically new entity. Other interpretations emphasizing the continuities between Lyme disease and its epidemiological antecedents, nevertheless, were possible. Clinicians, patients, and advocacy groups continue to contest the character, significance, and appropriate treatment of Lyme disease. Highly publicized discussions among the interested parties reflect American society's ongoing concern with new legitimating diagnoses, personal responsibility for acute and chronic disease, and the authority of science.
