Conquering Lyme Disease by Brian Fallon

Author:Brian Fallon
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: MED039000, Medical/History, MED067000, Medical/Pathology
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Published: 2017-12-12T05:00:00+00:00

Babesiosis

OVERVIEW

Babesia microti is a malaria-like protozoan that parasitizes and destroys human red blood cells. This infection is transmitted by the bite of Ixodes scapularis, the same tick species that transmits Lyme disease. Similar to Lyme disease, Babesiosis affects primarily southern New England and the northern Midwest with a peak incidence during the warmer months. In some areas of the United States, B. microti infection is almost as common as Lyme disease; on Nantucket Island off of Massachusetts, for example, this common illness is called “Nantucket Fever.” A related tick-borne microbe, Babesia duncani (WA1), is primarily found in the Pacific coastal states. Babesia divergens is the primary cause of Babesiosis in Europe, but cases have also been reported in the United States. Rarely, Babesia can be transmitted via a blood transfusion or from mother to child. In most states, the blood supply is not currently screened for Babesia microbes, even though Babesiosis is a frequently reported transfusion-related parasitic infection in the United States, found in 3 to 8 percent of blood donations. This is of growing concern because some infected adults may have few symptoms and so would have no awareness when considering a blood donation that the donated blood might harm or even kill a sick individual with a weakened immune system.

The time from Babesia infection to onset of symptoms after a tick bite is typically one to four weeks but can be as long as three months; after transfusion of infected blood, the symptoms may not emerge until six months later. The actual frequency of Babesia infection is unclear because Babesiosis is mild and self-limiting in most cases. Coinfection of B. microti with other tick-borne infections may lead to more severe manifestations.

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