[Small risk of developing Lyme borreliosis following a tick bite on Ameland: research in a general practice]

To investigate the percentage of ticks infected with Borrelia burgdorferi on the Dutch North Sea island of Ameland, and the risk of developing Lyme disease following tick bite on the island.

Prospective, observational.

Ticks were collected from patients who visited a general practitioner and were tested for the DNA of B. burgdorferi. After 6 months the patients were interviewed by phone using a standardised questionnaire.

From 2004-2006, 216 ticks were collected from 167 persons. Most ticks were removed within 24 hours. In 44 ticks (20.4%) B. burgdorferi DNA was detected. Follow up information was available on 146 persons, 41 (28.1%) of whom had been bitten by a Borrelia-positive tick. None of the persons developed a typical erythema migrans. From the 13 persons (9%) reporting a non-specific redness of the skin (diameter less than 5 cm) at the site of the tick bite, 5 had been bitten by a positive tick and 8 by a negative tick. One patient bitten by a positive tick reported systemic symptoms related to Lyme borreliosis, namely fatigue, perspiration and joint ache, without local redness.

The probability of developing Lyme borreliosis was low even though a relatively large percentage of the ticks collected were positive for B. burgdorferi. This is probably connected to the fact that in the majority of cases the tick had been removed within 24 hours.