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Lyme Disease Research Paper

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Plenty of dogs are infected with tick-transmitted diseases. They feed on blood and transmit diseases intothe dog's system. The key to curing tick-borne disease is to make sure you get your dog checked early so treatment can be applied as soon as possible. Treatment such as giving the dog antibiotics will help effectively. Antibiotic treatment destroys bacteria, along with disease causing organisms. Checking your dog for ticks daily during spring, summer and fall, or year-round in warmer climates could help you prevent the disease. A good way to check your dog is to brush your fingers through his or her fur, applying enoughpressure to feel any small bumps that may be on its skin. An embedded tick will vary in size, from a pinhead to a grape. …show more content…

Your dog may not show signs right away but signs can start to appear months after the dog has been infected of the disease. The highest risk seasons for Lyme disease is late spring and early fall. Lyme disease is an acute disease which means it's a short but rapid course. The incubation periods for showing clinical signs of being infected is two to five months after been bitten by the tick. Long incubation periods, can cause your dog to be on antibodies for a long period of time. You can detect the disease by western blot testing which helps to differentiate the immune response elicited by infection from that induced by vaccination. "Since 1995, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended that serological testing for Lyme disease consist of a two-tiered approach an initial screening with an enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) or an indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) test, followed by a Western blot to corroborate a positive or suspect test result(CDC)". Whole cell antigens of the Borreliaburgdorferispirochete are assumed to be rapidlysequestered by the follicular dendritic cells, resulting in long-lived B cell memory. Dogs tested for whole-cell antibodies rarely have a significant decrease in antibody, even as successful treatment lowers the Borreliaburgdorferi

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