User:Miafclark/Lyme disease

The late disseminated infection was taken from the article. The only editing I did was remove the last two sentences from the third paragraph because it was false. The second section called neuropsychiatric symptoms and mental health is a new section not already included in the existing article. I am adding my edits to the existing article now.

Late disseminated infection
Lyme arthritis occurs in up to 60% of untreated people, typically starting about six months after infection. It usually affects only one or a few joints, often a knee or possibly the hip, other large joints, or the temporomandibular joint. Usually, large joint effusion and swelling occur, but only mild or moderate pain. Without treatment, swelling and pain typically resolve over time, but periodically return. Baker's cysts may form and rupture.

In early US studies of Lyme disease, a rare peripheral neuropathy was described that included numbness, tingling, or burning starting at the feet or hands and over time possibly moving up the limbs. In a later analysis that discovered poor documentation of this manifestation, experts wondered if it exists at all in the US or is merely very rare.

A neurologic syndrome called Lyme encephalopathy is associated with subtle memory and cognitive difficulties, insomnia, a general sense of feeling unwell, and changes in personality. Lyme encephalopathy is controversial in the US and has not been reported in Europe.

Acrodermatitis chronica atrophicans is a chronic skin disorder observed primarily in Europe among the elderly. It begins as a reddish-blue patch of discolored skin, often on the backs of the hands or feet. The lesion slowly atrophies over several weeks or months, with the skin becoming first thin and wrinkled and then, if untreated, completely dry and hairless. It is also associated with peripheral neuropathy.

Neuropsychiatric Symptoms and Mental Health
Symptoms of Lyme disease can effect an individual's quality of life, and therefore, further lead to mental health issues. Lyme disease itself can also have a direct causation to mental health disorders. It can infect and restrain biological mechanisms, causing adverse effects to the biomedical factors of the brain and immune system, which can result in the development of neuropsychiatric symptoms. When sleep disorders and chronic unremitting stress is in combination with these restraints, a wide varying amount of psychiatric disorders can arise, such as depression, cognitive impairments, and schizoaffective disorders. It is possible for patients to experience cognitive impairments years after lyme disease. These impairments caused by Lyme disease may present themselves as memory problems, verbal memory difficulties, or auditory attention problems.

People with lyme disease are more likely to have mental health disorders and struggles with suicidal thoughts. For some patients the first sign of infection can be the sudden onset of depression and anxiety symptoms. This may cause patients with Lyme disease to be misdiagnosed with psychiatric illnesses, in which case, treatment may be ineffective. Antimicrobials alongside symptom reduction treatment can help mitigate the burden of neuropsychiatric symptoms.