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Misdiagnosis causes complications from Lyme disease
By jeremyc | June 6, 2011
At times it so happens that there is a huge error on the part of doctors by way of misdiagnosis of a certain disease. Lyme disease is one such medical problem that has often been misdiagnosed by doctors and has ended up causing many unwanted long term effects for the affected people.
Lyme disease is caused by ticks – also known as deer ticks, as they are found on the body of deer. However such ticks are also found on the bodies of rodents. The symptoms of the disease are quite similar to the routine flu. Fever, headache, body ache, muscle pain and extreme tiredness are the initial symptoms. What is even more alarming is that more often than not the tell-tale mark of the disease a red rash surrounding the area where the tick has bitten the person is often missing.
The absence of this mark and the lack of conclusive tests often mislead doctors and make them commit an error in diagnosis. By the time the doctor and the patient both realize the actual disease it becomes too difficult for the patient. The antibiotics do not work because of the delay and the patient stands a huge chance of facing problems like arthritis and neurological difficulties.
Various recommendations have come up in order to prevent the spread of Lyme disease through deer tick bite, the most important one being that people should avoid bushy areas where the insects usually thrives. Moreover, one should tuck in one’s pants into boots while going to such bushy areas or any other area which is known to be tick-infested. This will prevent the biting of ticks and thereby lessen the chances of occurrence of Lyme disease. Using repellents to ward off these insects is also a good option. Finally, one should regularly check for signs of tick bites in the common areas in one’s body, especially those areas where ticks are most likely to bite. Armpits, back of the knees, head and scalp are the areas that people need to check so as to prevent the tick from sticking on to the skin following these preventive steps can help one from falling prey to Lyme disease.
Though Lyme disease is not fatal its misdiagnosis causes unnecessary problems for the patient – both in terms of health and expenditure. For this reason alone there needs to be a proper testing procedure to make sure that the patient’s care is taken right at the onset of the disease’s occurrence.
Topics: | General Health News |
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