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© 1996 British Society for Rheumatology

research-article

LYME BORRELIOSIS IN RHEUMATOLOGICAL PRACTICE: IDENTIFICATION OF LYME ARTHRITIS AND DIAGNOSTIC ASPECTS IN A SWEDISH COUNTY WITH HIGH ENDEMICITY

J. BERGLUND*,{dagger},{ddagger}, I. BLOMBERG§ and B. U. HANSEN

*Ronneby Health Centre Ronneby
{dagger}Departments of Community Health Sciences Lund
{ddagger}Infectious Diseases, University of Lund Lund
§Department of Clinical Microbiology Karlskrona, Sweden
¶Department of Internal Medicine: Division of Rheumatology, Central Hospital Karlskrona, Sweden

Correspondence to: Correspondence to: J. Berglund, Ronneby Health Centre, Rosengatan 15, S-372 30 Ronneby, Sweden

To prospcctively study the prevalence of Lyme arthritis, 100 consecutive patients referred to a rheumatology out-patient clinic and 115 patients with a classified rheumatological disease were included. Individuals seropositive for antibody against the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato complex were examined for clinical signs or a history of Lyme borreliosis. Positive titres against B. bwgdorferi s.l. were found in 7/100 and 15/115, respectively. Among the 100 referred patients, Lyme arthritis was diagnosed in five cases. Carpal tunnel syndrome was the presenting clinical feature in two of them. One of the 115 individuals with a previously classified rheumatological disease was re-classified as Lyme arthritis. All cases of Lyme arthritis improved after oral antibiotic treatment. This study revealed Lyme arthritis to be a common disorder in this part of Sweden and the diagnosis should be considered in patients with acute or recurrent episodes of mono- or oligoarthritis.

KEY WORDS: Borrelia burgdorferi, Lyme borreliosis, Lyme arthritis, Carpal tunnel syndrome, Arthritis, Rheumatology, Epidemiology


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