Number of cases of Lyme disease by tick bite

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The number of borreliosis cases caused by bites of ticks in Bavaria peaked this year, with nearly 2,200 cases of Lyme disease reported in the free state, according to a spokesman for the National Health Board C & # 39; is the the highest number of reported cases since the introduction of the reporting requirement in 2013. It is about ten percent higher than that of 2016 – the year with the largest number from recordings to present. The current number has moved in the usual fluctuations, the spokeswoman could not say yet.

Among the possible causes of the increase is the good weather: When many people in nature stop and ticks at the same time find favorable conditions, there are also more tick bites. And the more animals are infected with the pathogen, the more likely it is to transmit to humans. However, the data available up to here from Germany would give no indication of an increase in tick infection rates with Borrelia, it was said by the Office of 39; State. About 5 to 35 percent of ticks are infected with Borrelia, according to LGL.

Lyme disease is the most common infectious disease transmitted by ticks. It often starts with the so-called Wanderröte – a red ring that forms around the tick and gets bigger. Other symptoms may include muscle and joint pain and fever – even weeks after the sting. In the absence of treatment, the disease can lead to long-term consequences, such as inflammation of the joints, heart muscle or nerves.

There is no vaccine against pathogens; However, antibiotics help. The likelihood of transmission increases plus the tick can suck the blood. Therefore, animals should be removed from the skin as soon as possible.

On the other hand, the number of meningitis remained constant at nearly 90 cases compared to the previous year. The number of reported cases of tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) varies considerably from one year to the next – the range for the entire year ranges from 80 cases in 2002 to nearly 230 cases in 2017. TBE is caused by viruses. The febrile illness sometimes affects the meninges. In particularly severe cases, it can lead to encephalitis and spinal cord injury and paralysis. There are no medicines for the treatment of FSME, but you can be vaccinated against him.

The risk of being infected with FSME is particularly high in southern Germany (Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, southern Hessen). More and more areas of the Free State are declared a risk area. For Lyme disease, however, no risk zone is defined.

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