Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/rare-...disease-can-attack-the-heart-doctor-1.3952476
Rare but serious complication of Lyme disease can attack the heart: doctor
CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Wednesday, May 30, 2018 10:00PM EDT
A heart specialist in Kingston, Ont. is warning health care professionals across the country to be on the lookout for a rare but serious complication of Lyme disease in which the disease bacteria begin to attack the heart.
The condition is called Lyme carditis and it can do serious damage by disturbing the heart?s electrical system andrate. Cardiologist Dr. Adrian Baranchuk, from the Kingston General Hospital Research Institute, says that?s why it?s so important for Canadian doctors to recognize the symptoms early and begin treatment ? even before they have a definite diagnosis.
Most Canadians know Lyme disease is spread by ticks carrying the bacteria. The illness those bacteria cause is marked by fever, fatigue, and joint pain as well as other symptoms.
A deer tick that can transmit Lyme disease is shown in this file photo.
But when Lyme bacteria travel through the blood to the heart, they can also cause inflammation that disrupts the organ?s electrical system. The result is a condition called ?heart block? in which the heartbeat becomes too slow...
Rare but serious complication of Lyme disease can attack the heart: doctor
CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Wednesday, May 30, 2018 10:00PM EDT
A heart specialist in Kingston, Ont. is warning health care professionals across the country to be on the lookout for a rare but serious complication of Lyme disease in which the disease bacteria begin to attack the heart.
The condition is called Lyme carditis and it can do serious damage by disturbing the heart?s electrical system andrate. Cardiologist Dr. Adrian Baranchuk, from the Kingston General Hospital Research Institute, says that?s why it?s so important for Canadian doctors to recognize the symptoms early and begin treatment ? even before they have a definite diagnosis.
Most Canadians know Lyme disease is spread by ticks carrying the bacteria. The illness those bacteria cause is marked by fever, fatigue, and joint pain as well as other symptoms.
A deer tick that can transmit Lyme disease is shown in this file photo.
But when Lyme bacteria travel through the blood to the heart, they can also cause inflammation that disrupts the organ?s electrical system. The result is a condition called ?heart block? in which the heartbeat becomes too slow...