In Response to ‘Patient Lyme disease websites prioritize science; public health websites prioritize consistent messaging’

Abstract Background Despite scientific evidence that climate change has profound and far reaching implications for public health, translating this knowledge in a manner that supports citizen engagement, applied decision-making, and behavioural change can be challenging. This is especially true for complex vector-borne zoonotic diseases such as Lyme disease, a tick-borne disease which is increasing in range and impact across Canada and internationally in large part due to climate change. This exploratory research aims to better understand public risk perceptions of climate change and Lyme disease in order to increase engagement and motivate behavioural change. Methods A focus group study involving 61 participants was conducted in three communities in the Canadian Prairie province of Manitoba in 2019. Focus groups were segmented by urban, rural, and urban-rural geographies, and between participants with high and low levels of self-reported concern regarding climate change. Results Findings indicate a broad range of knowledge and risk perceptions on both climate change and Lyme disease, which seem to reflect the controversy and complexity of both issues in the larger public discourse. Participants in high climate concern groups were found to have greater climate change knowledge, higher perception of risk, and less skepticism than those in low concern groups. Participants outside of the urban centre were found to have more familiarity with ticks, Lyme disease, and preventative behaviours, identifying differential sources of resilience and vulnerability. Risk perceptions of climate change and Lyme disease were found to vary independently rather than correlate, meaning that high climate change risk perception did not necessarily indicate high Lyme disease risk perception and vice versa. Conclusions This research contributes to the growing literature framing climate change as a public health issue, and suggests that in certain cases climate and health messages might be framed in a way that strategically decouples the issue when addressing climate skeptical audiences. A model showing the potential relationship between Lyme disease and climate change perceptions is proposed, and implications for engagement on climate change health impacts are discussed.

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Epidemiology of Lyme Disease

Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1155/1991/852310 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 2 (2) ◽

pp. 58-60

Author(s):

Dennis J White

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Lyme Disease ◽

Disease Surveillance ◽

Vector Species ◽

Potential Vector ◽

Public Health Agencies ◽

Laboratory Services ◽

Health Agencies ◽

Surveillance Programs ◽

Risk Of Exposure

Investigation of the epidemiology of Lyme disease depends upon information generated from several sources. Human disease surveillance can be conducted by both passive and active means involving physicians, public health agencies and laboratories. Passive and active tick surveillance programs can document the extent of tick-borne activity, identify the geographic range of potential vector species, and determine the relative risk of exposure to Lyme disease in specific areas. Standardized laboratory services can play an important role in providing data. Epidemiologists can gain a better understanding of Lyme disease through the collection of data from such programs. The interpretation of data and provision of information to the medical and general communities are important functions of public health agencies.

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Quality Control Assessment of Canadian Laboratories Testing for Lyme Disease

Canadian Journal of Infectious Diseases ◽

10.1155/1991/128961 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 41-45

Author(s):

Harvey Artsob ◽

Maxwell Garvie

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Quality Control ◽

Lyme Disease ◽

Borrelia Burgdorferi ◽

Western Blot ◽

Etiological Agent ◽

Immunofluorescent Assay ◽

Satisfactory Performance ◽

Endemic Areas ◽

Negative Controls

In June 1990 a quality control assessment was undertaken of Canadian public health laboratories testing for antibodies toBorrelia burgdorferi, the etiological agent of Lyme disease. Twenty sera were distributed to nine laboratories, including 12 obtained from patients in Lyme endemic areas and presumed to be serological positives, and eight prescreened negative controls. Seventeen serological reports were submitted, comprising nine enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (elisa), six immunofluorescent assays and two Western blot assessments. Antibodies were detected in 11 of the 12 sera which had been presumed to be positive. Assuming 11 positive sera had been submitted, the test sensitivities varied from 88.9 to 100% byelisa, and 54.5 to 90.1% by immunofluorescent assay. Specificities were 100% for all but oneelisaand one immunofluorescent assay assessment. The results indicate a satisfactory performance byelisabut a need for upgrading or replacement of some immunofluorescent assay tests.

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Lyme Disease Frontiers: Reconciling Borrelia Biology and Clinical Conundrums

Pathogens ◽

10.3390/pathogens8040299 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 8 (4) ◽

pp. 299 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Vladimir V. Bamm ◽

Jordan T. Ko ◽

Iain L. Mainprize ◽

Victoria P. Sanderson ◽

Melanie K. B. Wills

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Clinical Practice ◽

Phenotypic Plasticity ◽

Lyme Disease ◽

Biomedical Research ◽

Immune Modulation ◽

Incidence Rates ◽

The World ◽

Public Health Threat ◽

Host Genetic

Lyme disease is a complex tick-borne zoonosis that poses an escalating public health threat in several parts of the world, despite sophisticated healthcare infrastructure and decades of effort to address the problem. Concepts like the true burden of the illness, from incidence rates to longstanding consequences of infection, and optimal case management, also remain shrouded in controversy. At the heart of this multidisciplinary issue are the causative spirochetal pathogens belonging to the Borrelia Lyme complex. Their unusual physiology and versatile lifestyle have challenged microbiologists, and may also hold the key to unlocking mysteries of the disease. The goal of this review is therefore to integrate established and emerging concepts of Borrelia biology and pathogenesis, and position them in the broader context of biomedical research and clinical practice. We begin by considering the conventions around diagnosing and characterizing Lyme disease that have served as a conceptual framework for the discipline. We then explore virulence from the perspective of both host (genetic and environmental predispositions) and pathogen (serotypes, dissemination, and immune modulation), as well as considering antimicrobial strategies (lab methodology, resistance, persistence, and clinical application), and borrelial adaptations of hypothesized medical significance (phenotypic plasticity or pleomorphy).

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Parasitose Palpebral por Carraça: Caso Clínico e Revisão da Literatura

Acta Médica Portuguesa ◽

10.20344/amp.9442 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 31 (2) ◽

pp. 126

Author(s):

Jorge Moreira ◽

Tiago Maio ◽

Filipa Sampaio

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Lyme Disease ◽

Tick Infestation ◽

Infectious Agents ◽

Eyelid Margin ◽

Upper Eyelid ◽

Local Reactions ◽

Tick Paralysis

Tick infestation is rarely seen in ophthalmological practice. We report the case of a 73-year-old woman who presented with edema and erythema of her right upper eyelid. Biomicroscopic examination revealed a tick firmly attached to the eyelid margin. The tick was successfully removed using fine tweezers, and within a few days, the patient had fully recovered without sequelae. Ticks are a threat to public health as they are known vectors of numerous infectious agents responsible for serious pathologies such as Lyme disease. Ticks may also induce cutaneous local reactions, and more rarely, tick paralysis. Since morbidity increases substantially with the duration of the infestation, the tick should be completely removed as soon as possible, and patients should be aware about possible signs of tick related diseases.

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Public perceptions of Lyme disease and climate change in southern Manitoba, Canada: Making a case for strategic decoupling of climate and health messages

10.21203/rs.3.rs-40333/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Laura Cameron ◽

Rhéa Rocque ◽

Kailey Penner ◽

Ian Mauro

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Climate Change ◽

Risk Perception ◽

Lyme Disease ◽

Risk Perceptions ◽

Public Discourse ◽

Behavioural Change ◽

Health Messages ◽

Urban Rural ◽

Climate And Health

Abstract Background: Despite scientific evidence that climate change has profound and far reaching implications for public health, translating this knowledge in a manner that supports citizen engagement, applied decision-making, and behavioural change can be challenging. This is especially true for complex vector-borne zoonotic diseases such as Lyme disease, a tick-borne disease which is increasing in range and impact across Canada and internationally in large part due to climate change. This research aims to better understand public risk perceptions of climate change and Lyme disease in order to increase engagement and motivate behavioural change.Methods: A focus group study involving 61 participants was conducted in three communities in the Canadian Prairie province of Manitoba in 2019. Focus groups were segmented by urban, rural, and urban-rural geographies, and between participants with high and low levels of self-reported concern regarding climate change. Results: Findings indicate a broad range of knowledge and risk perceptions on both climate change and Lyme disease, which seem to reflect the controversy and complexity of both issues in the larger public discourse. Participants in high climate concern groups were found to have greater climate change knowledge, higher perception of risk, and less scepticism than those in low concern groups. Participants outside of the urban centre were found to have more familiarity with ticks, Lyme disease, and preventative behaviours, identifying potential differential sources of resilience and vulnerability. Risk perceptions of climate change and Lyme disease were found to vary independently rather than correlate, meaning that high climate change risk perception did not necessarily indicate high Lyme disease risk perception and vice versa. Conclusions: This research contributes to the growing literature framing climate change as a public health issue, and suggests that in certain cases climate and health messages might be strategically decoupled when addressing climate skeptical audiences. A model showing the orthogonal relationship between Lyme disease and climate change perceptions is proposed, and implications for engagement on climate change health impacts are discussed.

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Individualized environments, individual cures: An examination of Lyme disease activism in Virginia

Environment and Planning E Nature and Space ◽

10.1177/2514848620923593 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 251484862092359

Author(s):

Brent Z Kaup ◽

Matthew Abel ◽

Amanda Sikirica

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

Lyme Disease ◽

Health Professionals ◽

Diagnosis And Treatment ◽

Public Health Professionals ◽

Physical Environments ◽

Environmental Causes ◽

State And Local ◽

Individual Choices ◽

Individual Human

Doctors, patients, and public health professionals widely recognize that certain physical environments are more conducive to the emergence and spread of Lyme disease. However, ecological solutions to the spread of the disease are rarely pursued. Drawing on interviews with Lyme activists, politicians, and state and local administrators dealing with Lyme disease related issues as well as an analysis of Lyme disease legislation in the state of Virginia, we examine why solutions to Lyme disease most often focus on expanding individual choices for diagnosis and treatment over changing the environments that enhance the risk of Lyme disease. We argue that the emergence of Lyme disease in a neoliberal society pushed debates on how to best deal with the disease away from its underpinning environmental causes and into individual human bodies.

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