Vermont resident dies of rare Lyme disease complication that affected their heart

  • A Vermont resident died from complications due to Lyme carditis, state health officials reported 
  • Lyme carditis occurs when Lyme bacteria enters heart tissue and interferes with electrical signals that control heartbeat
  • The CDC says that only one percent of all cases reported to the agency result in this complication and just nine deaths have occurred between 1985 and 2015 

A Vermont resident has died from a rare complication of Lyme disease, according to health officials.

The Vermont Health Department reported that the unnamed resident died after the disease developed into Lyme carditis.

The potentially fatal condition occurs when the bacteria that causes Lyme disease gets into the tissues of the heart, where it can interfere with the movement of electrical signals between the heart's chambers. 

It comes after a study released last week revealed that every US state has residents who tested positive for Lyme disease.

A Vermont resident has died from a rare complication of Lyme disease, according to health officials (file image)

A Vermont resident has died from a rare complication of Lyme disease, according to health officials (file image)

Lyme disease is a tick-borne illness that results from the bite of blacklegged ticks, according to the CDC.

A red bump will appear at the site of the tick bite and between three to 30 days later, sufferers will experience, chills, headache, fever, joint pain and muscle weakness. 

The CDC says that in the days and months after the bite, people may suffer from severe joint pain, shortness of breath, nerve pain and short-term memory.

When diagnosed early, doctors will prescribe antibiotics for treatment. When left untreated, Lyme disease can cause complications in the joints and nervous system.

The agency said that around 30,000 cases of the disease are reported by state health departments and Washington, DC every year.

Lyme carditis occurs when the bacteria gets into the heart and interferes with the way the organ regulates heartbeat.

When the electrical signals are disrupted, it is known as atrial-ventrical (AV) block. Sufferers may experience faintness, trouble breathing, palpitations or chest pains.

AV block has three degrees, with the third degree being the most serious. This is when the heart is not efficiently pumping blood throughout the body, which can result in cardiac arrest and even death.

According to the CDC, only nine cases of fatal Lyme carditis were reported between 1985 and 2018 with most people being treated via antibiotics.

It is the first case ever reported in the state of Vermont. 

The Vermont victim lived in Franklin County and was middle-aged but the name and sex were not revealed due to confidentiality reasons.

It is also unclear when the resident contracted the disease and when he or she died.

According to state Health Commissioner Dr Mark Levine, Lyme is increasingly common in Vermont - in fact, 95 percent of all reported cases come from the northeastern US.

However, he stressed that Lyme carditis is very rare and that less than one percent of all Lyme disease cases reported to the CDC result in this condition.   

Levine said that while tick-borne diseases can cause serious illness, Lyme disease, including Lyme carditis, is treatable.

The report of the resident's death comes just a week after a study from Quest Diagnostics revealed that Lyme disease has reached every state in the US and the nation's capital.

Lyme disease is still most prevalent in the Northeast, with seven states - Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont - accounting for 60 percent of all cases last year.

Two states not known for Lyme disease cases, Florida and California, saw a 77 percent spike and a 194.5 percent spike, respectively, since 2015, the report revealed.

According to CNBC, Valneva, a French company, is working on a vaccine for Lyme disease that was recently approved for fast-track by the FDA.