Borrelia Mayonii

Overview

Borrelia mayonii has been found in ixodes ticks only in the state of Wisconsin, making it safe to say that it could be transmitted in the neighboring states as well. It was originally discovered when six patients from North Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin tested positive. However, when screening 25,000 blood samples from Lyme endemic areas in the U.S., no new cases were identified.

Signs and Symptoms

Given the limitations of generalizing from only a small sample of identified patients, presentations include fever, headaches, rash, and neck and muscle pain initially, followed by arthritis in the weeks following infection. The few patients identified with B. mayonii went on to develop more gastrointestinal symptoms than in Lyme disease, as well as higher fevers and diffuse flat rashes.

Diagnosis

Half of the patients test positive on the ELISA and Western blots for Lyme, however all of them tested positive on a PCR assay for Borrelia mayonii. A blood smear may also be helpful in these cases.