What Are the Stages of Lyme Disease

Lyme disease is a vector-borne disease. It is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi and Borrelia mayonii. It is transmitted to humans through infected black-legged tick bites. It causes headache, fatigue, skin rash (erythema migraine), and if left untreated, it can spread into the bones, heart, and nervous system. In most cases, Lyme disease can be treated successfully within a week or two with antibiotics.

There are three stages of Lyme disease:

Early Localized Disease

It develops within days to weeks after being infected. A bull eye rash appears at the tick bite site. This stage is curable and not very dangerous. The symptoms of the early localized disease include:

• Fatigue
• Sore throat
• Stiff neck and headache
• Flu-like illness
• Chills and fever
• Joint pain
• Muscle soreness
• Skin rash
• Swollen lymph nodes

Early Disseminated Lyme

This occurs after several weeks or months after the tick bite. In this stage, the bacteria starts to spread inside the body. This also happens if the early localized disease is left untreated. It possesses similar symptoms to that of early localized disease; some of the symptoms of early disseminated Lyme are:

• Facial paralysis (Bell’s palsy)
• Chills
• Palpitations
• Chest pain
• Numbness in arms
• Headache
• Fatigue
• Fever
• Chills
• Change in vision

Late Disseminated Lyme Disease

This is also known as post-treatment, chronic, or neurological Lyme disease. This usually occurs when the other two stages are left untreated or poorly treated. It may even occur after weeks, months, and even years after tick bites. In this type of Lyme disease, the bacteria spread inside the body and can cause chronic arthritis and increased cardiac and neurological complications. Some of the symptoms of late disseminated Lyme disease are:

• Vertigo
• Dizziness
• Insomnia
• Concentration issues, mental fogginess
• Numbness in arms, hands, and feet
• Intense fatigue
• Severe headaches and migraines
• Arthritis
• Stiff neck

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