Korean J Dermatol.  2008 Aug;46(8):1112-1116.

A Case of Lyme Disease with Various General Symptoms

• Lee D
• Kim SH
• Hong SK
• Seo JK
• Sung HS
• Hwang SW

Abstract

Lyme borreliosis is a multi-systemic tick-borne infectious disease caused by the spirochaete, Borrelia burgdorferi. It has many non-specific symptoms affecting the skin, eye, musculoskeletal system, cardiovascular system, and central and peripheral nervous system. Typical cutaneous manifestations of lyme borreliosis include erythema chronicum migrans, borrelia lymphocytoma appearing a few weeks after the tick bite, and acrodermatitis chronica atrophicans developing a few years after. The diagnosis is based on clinical findings with detection of specific Ig M and Ig G antibodies to Borrelia burgdorferi. A 50-year old woman presented with an erythematous to violaceous annular patch with central scaly hyperpigmented patch on the right arm and an erythematous indurated patch on the right thigh for a month. She did not recall a deer tick bite. She had severe arthralgia on the right shoulder and myalgia on the right thigh at the first visit. Three months later, she complained of chest pain, and mild dyspnea on exertions. Serologic examinations revealed increased levels of Ig M and Ig G antibodies to borrelial antigen via ELISA, and Western blot test for Borrelia burgdorferi was positive. Her general symptoms as well as skin lesions subsided with an antibiotics (Doxycycline) and steroid therapy over 4 weeks.

Keyword

Lyme borreliosis; Non-specific general symptoms

MeSH Terms

Acrodermatitis
Anti-Bacterial Agents
Antibodies
Arm
Arthralgia
Bites and Stings
Blotting, Western
Borrelia
Borrelia burgdorferi
Cardiovascular System
Chest Pain
Communicable Diseases
Dyspnea
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
Erythema Chronicum Migrans
Eye
Female
Humans
Ixodes
Lyme Disease
Musculoskeletal System
Peripheral Nervous System
Pseudolymphoma
Shoulder
Skin
Thigh
Ticks
Anti-Bacterial Agents
Antibodies