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What is Lyme disease? Symptoms, causes and treatment of Justin Bieber’s condition
CELEBRITIES from Avril Lavigne to Bella Hadid have spoken out about their battles with the bacterial infection Lyme disease.
Pop star Justin Bieber has also reportedly revealed his own struggles in a new docuseries. But what exactly is it and how do you contract it?
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What are the signs of Lyme disease?
Most people develop a distinctive red rash the shape of a circle with a ring around it between three and 30 days after they were bitten.
The rash can vary in size significantly and can expand over the course of days or weeks.
Typically, this blemish grows to around 15cm in diameter.
However one in three people who contract Lyme disease won’t develop a rash and some people experience flu-like symptoms; tiredness, muscle pain, headaches, high temperatures, joint pain, chills and neck stiffness.
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What are the symptoms of Lyme disease?
If left untreated, Lyme disease sufferers can develop much more serious symptoms including:
- Serious joint pain
- Nervous system pain which can lead to paralysis of facial muscles, memory problems and difficulties concentrating
- Heart problems, such as inflammation of the heart muscle
- Inflammation of the membranes around the brain and spinal cord as with meningitis
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What are the causes of Lyme Disease?
Lyme disease is a bacterial infection which is spread by infected ticks.
The ticks feed on the blood of humans and animals and can be found in the UK, Europe and North America.
They can be found in any area of overgrown vegetation where there are animals for them to feed on.
The ticks don’t jump or fly but they cling on to clothes or skin if you brush past something that they are on.
They then bite the person and feed on their blood potentially passing on the infection.
What are the treatments?
Lyme disease is treated with antibiotics and you should visit the doctor immediately if you develop any of the symptoms described after being bitten by a tick.
Most people require a two to four week prescription depending on how developed the condition is.
For particularly severe cases, patients are referred to a specialist for antibiotic injections.
There is currently no vaccination to prevent Lyme disease.
Which celebs have had Lyme disease?
A number of celebrities have been diagnosed with Lyme disease.
Justin Bieber revealed that he has been battling with Lyme disease in a new docuseries.
He said how the disease took a toll on him for almost a year.
Kelly Osbourne also spoke about her experiences in her memoir There Is No F**king Secret: Letters From a Badass B***h.
The TV personality contracted the condition after being bitten by a tick at the reindeer sanctuary in her parents’ back garden back in 2004.
She told Andy Cohen: "I will do anything to raise awareness for it, because I almost died from it, and it is a debilitating disease that, most of the time, goes misdiagnosed."
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Super model Bella Hadid has spoken out about the difficulties living and working with the disease.
Avril Lavigne was diagnosed with the condition in 2014, she later said in an interview that the exhaustion was so extreme that she “thought she was dying”.
Alec Baldwin was also diagnosed with the disease in 2011, he hasn’t been very vocal about his struggle but did explain in an interview that at the same time of year, he gets really tired.
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LATEST ON LYME DISEASE
While in an exclusive interview with Bizarre, Shania Twain also confessed that Lyme disease robbed her of her voice.
Another celebrity to reveal they have the condition is former soap star and Loose Women panellist Martine McCutcheon.
Former rugby ace Matt Dawson has also spoken out about his struggle with the condition.
The Question of Sport star, 44, was diagnosed with Lyme disease when he developed feverish symptoms and he had undergo heart surgery after being bitten by a tick.
Kirstie Alley has also opened up about her weight struggles following her getting Lyme disease in 2017.
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