Lyme Disease Heart

Lyme Disease Heart
Heart diseases are a major threat to America and so does Lyme disease. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Many researchers say there is a connection between Lyme disease and heart diseases. In fact, one of the paradigm-shift measures that the American government is adopting in order to deal with heart diseases is helping fund research on the relationship between various heart problems and infectious diseases.

One such research is being conducted at San Diego State University. Once this research is complete, people will understand better the Lyme disease heart problems and the best way of treating them. This project is probably the first one of its kind in the whole world in the sense that microbiologists are working in partnership with medics in order to make the best use of information provided by experts in infectious diseases. This information, it is hoped, will make easy the process of coming up with proper treatments of both type of diseases.

The University has already dedicated a building worth $14.3 million in order to ensure that there is a proper environment for studying the relationship between heart disease and infectious disease. It is worth mentioning that more than 927,000 Americans lose their lives to cardiovascular diseases every year, according to Center for Disease Control and Prevention, located in Atlanta.

When one is suffering from Lyme disease, it is not easy for them to think about the potential threat, if there exists one at all, of suffering from a cardiovascular problem. Even medical experts find is rather unlikely that an infectious disease like Lyme could have any relationship with heart problems.

Medical research findings have tied several pathogens to heart disease. Viral myocarditis is one of these pathogens. This one attacks the muscle cells in the heart, triggering a very severe attack by the immune system within the body.

Lyme disease gets into our bodies through a bacterium known as Borrelia burgdorferi. It gets into our bodies through bites from an infected tick. This bacterium has been strongly linked to chronic arthritis, and more importantly, to heart disease. The same thing can be said of HIV the AIDS virus, which many people say, also contributes to or triggers heart failure among patients.

When the Lyme disease bacterium gets into the circulatory system, it can easily damage the valves and inner lining of the heart, resulting in a condition known as bacterial endocarditis. This is the best way of explaining the Lyme disease-heart relationship.