Cases of debilitating Lyme disease could be going undiagnosed
Cases of a bacterial infection that can lead to severe mental and physical problems could be much higher than previously thought, according to a new report.
The National Institute of Health and Care Excellence says the 3,000 cases of Lyme disease reported in the UK each year could be an underestimate, as many people go undiagnosed.
Spread through the bites of small parasites called ticks, its symptoms can be mild at first, but the long-term effects can be devastating.
Former England rugby international Matt Dawson got Lyme disease after being bitten in a west London park in 2016.
Although diagnosis was swift, the 45-year-old has had several operations after the disease damaged his heart.
"It's been a life-changer for me," he told Sky News.
He is on "daily medication", is having regular check-ups and cannot do any hard exercise that will raise his heart rate.
"My kids can't hide behind the door and come out and scare me because you don't want to be shocking the heart," he added.
"It's a little bit tricky day-to-day."
Former champion GB youth swimmer Sophie Ward got Lyme disease on a family trip to Beijing to watch the 2008 Olympics.
After a visit to a Chinese nature reserve, during which she cuddled a panda, Sophie began experiencing the migraines, muscle pains, infections and food intolerances that have plagued her ever since.
Only now, 10 years later, have doctors finally diagnosed the 24-year-old with Lyme disease - probably given to her by a tick on the panda.
"One day you're way up and the next minute you can't get out of bed and you're bedridden," Sophie told Sky News.
"And it makes it very difficult to live. You can't make plans. Social events, activities have to be scaled down to a couple of hours because they tire you out so quickly.
"And at 24, you know, you think 'I can travel the world, I should be going out partying,' and you can't hack it."
Lyme disease can be hard to spot, since its symptoms are so varied. One of the most common is a pink or red circular "bull's eye" rash around the bite area - but fewer than half of those affected will get one.
Other characteristics such as a high temperature, feeling shivery and tiredness can be misdiagnosed as other conditions such as flu.
Dr Jack Lambert is Professor of infectious diseases at University College Dublin and says tick borne infections are "very common" in the UK and Ireland.
"We need better research, but we need better clinical management, we need better education in GP practices for early identification and prevention and early treatment," he says.
"That way the patients won't develop chronic conditions and there's lots of people out there with chronic conditions. I think we have to have better education of specialists and GPs that the tests are imperfect."
Lyme disease can also affect dogs as well as humans, giving them fever and swollen joints.
The largest UK survey of ticks and tick-borne diseases, the Big Tick Project, looked at more than 12,000 dogs and found that around a third of them were carrying a tick.
Despite that, a national survey showed 47% of dog owners did not know that ticks can spread disease to both dogs and humans.
"Check over your dog every day, especially if you've taken them into an area where you know there are ticks around," says vet James Greenwood.
"So checking over their fur, looking between their paws, around their ears, that's the first thing to do. And if you do find a tick, the key thing to do is to remove it safely and effectively.
Experts say you should take extra care to check for ticks after walking in long grass or wooded areas, even in urban parks and gardens.
