Dr. Harriet Kotsoris, chief scientific officer with Global Lyme Alliance, answers this question and many more as a guest on “Steve Dale’s Other World,” a WGNPlus podcast, part of the StopLyme Campaign.
Steve Dale, a well-known Certified Animal Behavior Consultant and author, understands the effects of Lyme disease on our pets. But he wants to know, “What about the person at the other end of the leash?” And, if Lyme is considered an epidemic among veterinary parasitologists, what does the human medical community say?
In this podcast, Dr. Kotsoris shares with Steve what we know about Lyme disease, including diagnosis and prevention. According to Dr. Kotsoris, we must approach tick-borne diseases in three key areas–prevention, better diagnostics, and more effective treatment. One of the biggest gaps in the fight against this epidemic is the lack of an accurate diagnostic test. Without an accurate test, thousands of people are not diagnosed and receive no treatment.
No accurate test combined with the rapid spread of Lyme and other tick-borne illnesses, makes prevention a must, for both people and their pets. Lyme disease is now in all 50 states, not to mention more than 80 countries. The number of reported Lyme cases has now reached 476,000 in the U.S alone.
Increased prevention alone will not halt Lyme, and will not help those already infected. To develop effective treatments, including a vaccine for people, the need for research is greater than ever before. Unfortunately, despite the increased need, federal funds are limited. Global Lyme Alliance has gained national prominence for funding the most urgent and promising research in the field, focused on the development of an accurate and accessible diagnostic test, treatments for long-term Lyme, and a cure.
Listen to the entire podcast, and why Dr. Kotsoris believes more has been done to prevent Lyme in our pets than in people.
Steve Dale initiated the StopLyme campaign in May 2016. StopLyme is a public awareness campaign that includes the support of the American Veterinary Medical Association and the Global Lyme Alliance.
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