What is Lyme Disease?

Lyme Disease is the most common vector-borne disease in the United States with an estimated amount of over 300,000 new cases per year. This disease is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi and/or Borrelia mayonii. These bacterial strains are typically transferred to humans from the bite of an infected tick, but researchers are currently seeing new evidence that shows that Lyme Disease can be transmitted by other vectors including mites, fleas, mosquitos, as well as sexual transmission and from mother to baby. It is the most undiagnosed and misunderstood chronic illness in the United States.

Due to the countless amount of symptoms that Lyme Disease may present, it is often referred to as “the great imitator” as it displays itself in an array of mysteriously vast and generalized symptoms that can be misunderstood and misdiagnosed. Testing for Lyme Disease as well as its co-infections is infamously known for being inaccurate, so most practitioners rely heavily on diagnosis through a patient’s symptomatology.

A 2019 study stated that “the United States is experiencing an epidemic of increasing mental illness, suicide, violence, substance abuse and developmental disabilities in children, and many are questioning why this is occurring. At the same time, there is an increasing epidemic of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. There is also increasing recognition that infections and chronic tick-borne infections are contributing significantly to a burden of mental illness, suicide, violence, developmental disabilities in children and substance abuse.” This study later states that “psychiatric illnesses caused by Lyme disease, include developmental disorders, autism spectrum disorders, schizoaffective disorders, bipolar disorder, depression, anxiety disorders (panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, intrusive symptoms), eating disorders, decreased libido, sleep disorders, addiction, opioid addiction, cognitive impairments, dementia, suicide, violence, anhedonia, depersonalization, dissociative episodes, derealization and other impairments. These impairments result in diminished quality of life, lost productivity, disability, caregiver burden, violence, and suicide from untreated and inadequately treated Lyme disease. Lyme disease causes an estimated 1200 suicides, 31,000 suicide attempts and 15,000 self-harm events in the United States per year. Other psychiatric mortality from Lyme disease includes drug overdoses, accidents from cognitive impairments and homicide.” These claims are from adult-based research, not children. However, neurologic and cognitive symptoms in children are potentially just as common.

How Does Lyme Disease Affect Children?

Children with Lyme Disease may suffer from symptoms such as:

Chronic Fatigue
Joint Pain / Arthritis / Fibromyalgia
Mental Disorders (Depression, Anxiety, “Lyme Rage”)
Swollen Lymph Nodes
Headaches & Migraines
Heart Palpitations & Dysautonomia
Neurological Facial Paralysis (Bell’s Palsy)
Flu-Like Symptoms (Chills With or Without Fever, Sore Muscles, Stiffness, Sinus Infections, Stomach & Digestive Problems)
Unexplained Hair Loss
Seizures
Eye Problems (Oversensitivity to Light, Increased Floating Spots)

A 2014 study stated that “the reported incidence is highest in children aged 5 to 10 years, nearly twice as high as the incidence among adults.” Because Lyme disease can be non-specific and vague, adults may not realize when their children are infected. Children with Lyme disease may also experience difficulty thinking or expressing thoughts, outbursts and mood swings, uncharacteristic behavior, inability to sustain attention, difficulty reading or writing, elevated impulsivity, heightened paranoia, sensory hypersensitivity, and impaired concentration. Neurologic and cognitive symptoms are extremely common in children.

Due to Lyme disease being a changeable infection with potentially subtle symptoms, adults may recognize these symptoms as “growing pains,” “the terrible twos,” clinical depression, spending too much time on their phones, puberty, and mononucleosis.

However, prior to a Lyme disease diagnosis, children are often misdiagnosed with behavioral changes and mood disorders. These can be symptoms of Lyme disease, not the root cause.

Mental Health and Pediatric Lyme Disease:

Early symptoms of Lyme Disease are often diagnosed based on physical symptoms such as a bullseye rash, fatigue, headaches, joint pain, and fevers. However, Lyme may be involved in psychiatric and cognitive symptoms that can be easily misdiagnosed or confused with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, gastritis, or learning disabilities.

Pediatric Lyme Disease may also be involved in an immune dysfunction and condition known as PANS (Pediatric Acute On-Set Neuropsychiatric Syndrome). PANS can be caused by a variety of infections such as the Epstein-Barr virus, Chicken Pox, Influenza A, Lyme Disease, Lyme Co-infections (babesia, bartonella, rickettsia, etc.), Mycoplasma Pneumoniae, and other toxicities such as: mold, chemicals, and/or heavy metals. An abnormal immune response may trigger symptoms including OCD, ADHD, mood changes, aggression, depression, and panic attacks.

According to a 2018 study, “Lyme disease and the immune, biochemical, neurotransmitter, and the neural circuit reactions to it can cause impairments associated with violence.” Another 2018 study stated that “supporting this connection of childhood neuropsychiatric symptoms and tick-borne illness is a recent article looking at 27 youth diagnosed with bipolar disorder I or II, which found that 74% or 20/27 were diagnosed with at least one tick-borne illness based on serologic testing and clinician evaluation. Of note, bipolar disorder is a psychiatric illness that carries a high risk of suicide. There appears to be no question that exploration of the association of Lyme disease and tick-borne illnesses with neuropsychiatric symptoms both in children and adults requires more extensive study.” Later, this study states that 80% (55 of 69) of identified psychiatric patients that tested positive for tick-borne disease had symptoms of “aggressiveness as oppositional behavior, irritability, extreme temper tantrums, elevated impulsivity, intense emotional lability, periods of intense anger, appearing menacing and threatening to kill a sibling, parent or a friend.”

Since children’s brains are not fully developed, their brain and nervous system is at a higher risk of being affected.

How Can I Test My Child For Lyme Disease?

True or False: “If a Lyme Disease blood test comes back negative, you do not have Lyme Disease.”

False.

Unfortunately, testing for Lyme Disease is not always accurate. In conventional medicine, an ELISA/Western Blot Test will determine if a person is infected with Lyme Disease. But, cases are often missed.

Since the Lyme bacteria is a spirochete, a flexible spiral-like bacteria, it has the ability to hide within joints, lymph nodes, and mucous membranes. Due to its pleomorphic nature, it also can huddle in biofilms that are undetectable from a testing standpoint. Biofilms are multicellular communities that encase bacteria, viruses, metals, mold, etc. Biofilms lock these bodily threats into a sturdy case that protects them from getting hurt and to continue harming the host.

The presence of biofilms can explain the low rate of Borrelia detection in the blood of infected patients as well as the ability of the spirochetes to evade the host’s immune system and resist antibiotic therapy. Biofilms also have the ability to make bacteria and viruses remain dormant until it is threatened, making Lyme Disease one of the stealthiest infections known.

Since Lyme Disease is often considered as a possible diagnosis for months or years after a child is infected, conventional testing may not always be reliable.

If you believe you are dealing with chronic illness, please contact a functional provider. Dr. Jaban Moore, a functional medicine provider, can help you if you are experiencing chronic symptoms.

Please reach out if you are interested in taking your health back! You can give our office a call at (816) 889-9801.

References:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4994469/

https://academic.oup.com/cid/article/33/6/780/328918

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5957477/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21648354/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5729143/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21305487/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6165408/

https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejm199011223232102

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0891552015000203?via%3Dihub

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6787753/