Ask a doctor on the topic of General medicine

Lyme disease

May 12, 2015 | 15,00 EUR | answered by Dr. med. Frauke Gehring

Hello,

I have a question regarding the illness Lyme disease. I am 25 years old and 7 years ago I had a tick bite, which also turned slightly red, but in my opinion not a bull's-eye rash but simply a red spot about the size of a euro coin. At that time, I didn't think much of it, but unfortunately we recently discussed the topic in a lecture.

Now I have a bit of a fear of illnesses in general. I am now wondering if I contracted Lyme disease back then and if it is already in the chronic stage, as it has been 7 years. I don't remember having flu-like symptoms after the bite, but I do occasionally have mild joint pains, which I have always attributed to overexertion from sports. Since 2013, I have occasionally experienced heart palpitations.

My questions are:

1) How often does Lyme disease end fatally? If Lyme disease were the case, it would probably be chronic and untreatable after 7 years, right? What would the prognosis and life expectancy be for chronic Lyme disease?

2) How can I get tested? I can only make a doctor's appointment in 2 weeks, as I am currently abroad. Can it be done with a blood test or do you always have to do a lumbar puncture? I have had about 3 normal complete blood counts since then. Is 2 weeks too long?

3) I have read that Lyme disease can often trigger myocarditis. I had a complete heart checkup with a long-term ECG, ultrasound, stress ECG in 2013, would they have seen any damage there? Can myocarditis still occur after 7 years? Would it be noticeable?

I apologize for the many questions, but I am feeling very nervous at the moment. Kind regards.

Dr. med. Frauke Gehring

Good day,

Lyme disease only ends fatally in very rare cases. Almost never. Chronic Lyme disease does not shorten life. Blood tests are unreliable, you can save yourself from them. Cerebrospinal fluid is only examined in the presence of typical symptoms, which you do not have. A myocarditis would have been seen, of course, and after 7 years, it does not occur anymore. Forget about the whole thing!

Sincerely, Dr. Höllering