Participants were scheduled to receive an initial three-dose series of vaccines over the course of five to nine months, followed by a booster dose after twelve months, with both the initial series and the booster dose scheduled to be complete before the years peak Lyme disease season. Other research
An mRNA vaccine designed to cause a strong fast immune response to tick saliva allowed the immune system to detect and remove the ticks from test animals before they were able to transmit the infectious bacteria. The vaccine contains mRNAs for the body to build 19 proteins in tick saliva which, by enabling quick development of erythema (itchy redness) at the bite site, protects guinea pigs against Lyme disease. It also protected the test animals if the tick is not removed if only one tick, but not three, remain attached. Canine vaccines
Canine vaccines have been formulated and approved for the prevention of Lyme disease in dogs. Currently, three Lyme disease vaccines are available. LymeVax, formulated by Fort Dodge Laboratories, contains intact dead spirochetes which expose the host to the organism. Galaxy Lyme, Intervet-Schering-Ploughs vaccine, targets proteins OspC and OspA. The OspC antibodies kill any of the bacteria that have not been killed by the OspA antibodies. Canine Recombinant Lyme, formulated by Merial, generates antibodies against the OspA protein so a tick feeding on a vaccinated dog draws in blood full of anti-OspA antibodies, which kill the spirochetes in the ticks gut before they are transmitted to the dog. Treatment
Antibiotics are the primary treatment.
Permethrin-treated closed-toed shoes and socks reduce by 74 times the number of bites from nymphs that make first contact with a shoe of a person also wearing treated shorts (because nymphs usually quest near the ground, this is a typical contact scenario). Better protection can be achieved by tucking permethrin-treated trousers (pants) into treated socks and a treated long-sleeve shirt into the trousers so as to minimize gaps through which a tick might reach the wearers skin. Light-colored clothing may make it easier to see ticks and remove them before they bite. Military and outdoor workers uniforms treated with permethrin have been found to reduce the number of bite cases by 80–95%. Permethrin protection lasts several weeks of wear and washings in customer-treated items and up to 70 washings for factory-treated items. Permethrin should not be used on human skin, underwear or cats.The EPA recommends several tick repellents for use on exposed skin, including DEET, picaridin, IR3535 (a derivative of amino acid beta-alanine), oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE, a natural compound) and OLEs active ingredient para-menthane-diol (PMD). Unlike permethrin, repellents repel but do not kill ticks, protect for only several hours after application, and may be washed off by sweat or water. The most popular repellent is DEET in the U.S. and picaridin in Europe. Unlike DEET, picaridin is odorless and is less likely to irritate the skin or harm fabric or plastics.