W omen with Lyme disease take longer to get diagnosed, have more severe symptoms and experience higher rates of disability when compared to men. They may also be more likely to develop persistent Lyme disease.
Those are among the findings of a recent study that analyzed information from the MyLymeData patient registry. The results have been published in the International Journal of General Medicine.
The present study, which was conducted by LymeDisease.org, assessed sex-based differences in Lyme disease patients who remained ill for six months or more after antibiotic treatment. In addition to responses from 2,170 patients enrolled in MyLymeData, the researchers reviewed other Lyme disease studies to evaluate the distribution of patients by sex, stage of illness, data source, and enrollment criteria.
According to LymeDisease.org CEO Lorraine Johnson, lead author of the study, “We need to find out why more women than men develop persistent Lyme disease. Our study shows that women are diagnosed later—which increases their risk of chronic illness.
Analysis of the study data revealed several important insights. Women reported a higher prevalence of tick-borne co-infections, more severe symptoms, longer diagnostic delays, increased misdiagnoses, and greater functional impairment compared to men. …………Join or login below to continue reading.
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