Borrelia burgdorferi is a bacterium of the spirochete class and is the causative agent of Lyme Disease (LD) in humans. Lyme disease is a vector-borne zoonosis disease carried and transmitted usually by Ixodid ticks. First discovered in 1975 in the United States, there has been increasing awareness and reports of its diagnosis worldwide ever since.
Lyme Disease clinically presents initially with a ‘bulls-eye-like’ rash or Erythema migrans (EM) on the skin at the site of the tick bite, accompanied by a variety of other possible symptoms such as joint pain, chills, fever, fatigue and severe headache. If allowed to progress to further stages, carditis, chronic meningitis, Bell’s palsy, conjunctivitis and severe arthritis are typical clinical presentations that may persist.
In Australia, cases of clinical presentations consistent with LD were first reported in 1982 and has been a topic of controversy amongst the scientific and medical community since then. Hence, a reliable and efficient diagnostic protocol is vital in providing clinicians with accurate diagnosis and enable patient treatment strategies.