CDC reports Lyme disease remains significant problem

Atlanta - The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released information saying that more than 20,000 new Lyme disease cases per year were reported from 2003 to 2005, making it the most common vector-borne disease in the United States, according to HealthDay News.

Overall, 64,382 cases of Lyme disease were reported to the CDC from 2003 to 2005, with 93 percent occurring in 10 states where the disease appears to be endemic: Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Wisconsin.

The average annual incidence of Lyme disease in the 10 states during this period was 29.2 cases per 100,000 population, a figure triple the target annual incidence of 9.7 per 100,000 set by Healthy People 2010, according to the CDC. The agency says the target was based on the expected widespread use of a Lyme disease vaccine that was licensed in 1999 but withdrawn from the market in 2002 due to poor sales.

According to CDC statistics, 74 percent of the reported Lyme disease cases occurred from May through August, and 54 percent of them occurred in males. Although the median patient age was 41 years, 61 percent of cases occurred in children ages 5 to 14 years. The most common symptoms were erythema migrans and arthritis, reports the CDC.