LYME DISEASE

Lyme disease is an infection transmitted by ticks. The risk of Lyme disease is year round but the highest risk window is late spring into early summer. Over 300,000 new cases of Lyme disease are estimated to occur every year in the United States. That makes Lyme disease the most frequent tick-borne infection in North America. The ticks that transmit Lyme disease, deer ticks, are very small and difficult to see. They’re about the size of a pinhead when they come out in late spring and early summer.

But spending time outdoors, as good for you as it is, comes with its own set of risks.  Warm weather brings about an increase in ticks, which carry Lyme disease, among many others.  Tick bites require immediate treatment to be able to minimize the potential effects of Lyme.  So you’ve gotten a tick bite; what do you do now?