Lyme disease climbs again to record high

ATLANTA - Lyme disease, the tick-borne illness that causes fatigue and sore joints, rose to a record high in 2000, the government reported Thursday. <br> <br> The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it recorded 17,730 cases of Lyme in 2000, up 8 percent from 1999. The disease was found in 44 states and the District of Columbia, with six states Lyme-free. <br> <br> Lyme cases nearly doubled in the 1990s, in part because more Americans built homes in the woods, exposing them to infected ticks, the CDC says. Young children and people in their 50s appear to be most at risk. <br> <br> The disease causes fatigue, fever and joint pain that can persist for weeks, and some patients develop severe arthritis. Lyme also can badly damage the heart and nervous system if it goes untreated by antibiotics. <br> <br> Signs include rash and flulike symptoms. Daily tick checks, vaccinations and insect repellent are recommended as preventive measures. <br> <br> Lyme is highly concentrated in the Northeast, where people are more exposed to ticks. In 2000, 95 percent of Lyme cases reported to CDC came from just 12 states, almost all of them in the Northeast.

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