Causes and Risk Factors
When the deer ticks feed on human blood they transmit the disease from one infected person to a healthy one.
Lyme disease is brought about by the bacterium, Borrelia burgdorferi. Ticks are the vectors, which carry these disease-causing bacteria. They are brown in color and are the size of the head of a pin.
When the deer ticks feed on human blood they transmit the disease from one infected person to a healthy one. A tick that has fed on blood would grow several times in size.
While biting a person, if the tick is quickly removed, the infection can be avoided. In areas where the disease is rampant, as many as 50% of the deer ticks are infected. These creatures are more active in the summer months.
The risk factors for Lyme disease include-
• Living or spending time in the woods
• Spending time in grasslands
• Living in mice- infested areas, as mice are the prime reservoirs of Lyme disease bacteria
• Exposing skin in high –risk areas