The first symptom of Lyme disease (also called Lyme’s disease)
for about 50% of people is a small, red bull’s-eye rash, called
erythema migrans, at the site of an infected tick bite. The rash
usually appears a week or two after a painless bite, but can
appear within 3 to 30 days. It typically spreads or may show up
in other areas. It can also not look like a bull’s eye. And if
the tick rash is very small and in a hairy place, it may never
be noticed. Other early, acute symptoms are flu-like – fatigue,
achy muscles or joints, fever, chills, stiff neck, swollen
glands, and a headache. Most doctors base their diagnosis of
early Lyme primarily on the rash and accompanying symptoms.
There are blood tests, many of which return erroneous results.
We’ll have more to say about testing soon. If Lyme is identified
in this early stage and treated with an appropriate course of
antibiotics, it usually goes away. Treatment, however, doesn’t
provide immunity; you can get the disease again if another
infected tick bites you.