Chronic lyme isn't a medically recognized diagnosis in conventional medicine

Post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome may be caused by bacterial remnants in the liver

PTLDS, which refers to lingering symptoms of Lyme after antibiotic treatment, is an area of active research. Rodent research published in 2025 suggests that these ongoing symptoms may potentially be due to the body's inflammatory response to lingering cellular components from the bacteria that cause Lyme, Borrelia burgdorferi. In rodents, components of the bacteria's cellular wall may remain in the liver after the bacteria were eliminated with antibiotics.

Lyme disease was first identified in Lyme, Connecticut in 1975

A cluster of 51 children and adults in the town all began experiencing uncommon arthritic symptoms and the cases were reported to the state health department. A quarter of the cases were preceded by a skin lesion. The patients tended to live near the woods.

Blood tests for Lyme disease tend to come up as false negatives in the week after a bite

It can take several weeks for Lyme antibodies to develop, which is what blood tests would be detecting. That's why many clinicians will prescribe antibiotic treatment immediately after a bite if the individual develops the characteristic bullseye rash of Lyme or gets bitten in an area of the country known to have high rates of Lyme.

Nonwhite Lyme patients tend to be diagnosed later and have more severe disease

Peer-reviewed research published in 2025 from Pfizer—a pharmaceutical company working on a candidate vaccine for Lyme disease—examined Lyme data from more than 150,000 Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries and found that Black patients, as compared to white beneficiaries, were more likely to have disease that had spread further throughout the body at the time of care. The difference, the scientists wrote, may be partly due to difficulties recognizing the characteristic rash on darker-colored skin.

Lyme disease is caused by bacteria transmitted through the bite of infected ticks

It's an infectious disease caused by Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria. It's spread through the bite of two species of infected ticks, the Western blacklegged ticks on the West Coast, and Blacklegged ticks found throughout the eastern US. The ticks can transmit the disease at both the nymph and adult stage. It's not known to be transmitted from one person to another via kissing or sex.

Lyme disease may cost about $1B annually in the US

The economic burden of the disease in this estimate includes direct medical costs and societal costs, including productivity losses. It does not include suspected, undiagnosed, or nonacute cases, which would push that figure upward.

Erythema migrans rash is common in Lyme—but it often doesn't look like a bull's-eye

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that this rash occurs in roughly 70% or more of Lyme disease patients, and typically occurs at the site of a tick bite. The rash may expand slowly over several days and feel warm to the touch, but it's rarely itchy or painful. As it grows, areas of it may clear—creating a target or "bull's-eye" appearance.

Leprosy symptoms may appear 20 years after infection, so contact tracing isn't possible

The standard approach for tracking disease transmission isn't realistic for this disease because symptoms may take decades to manifest. As a result, disease transmission is still not fully understood.

Lupus, an autoimmune disease with varied symptoms, was named for wolf bite-like lesions

The 13th-century physician behind the name (lupus is Latin for wolf) named it after a patient he saw who had facial lesions that looked to him like a wolf's bite. Other common symptoms of the disease include extreme fatigue, painful and swollen joints, fevers, and light sensitivity.

Malaria case in Maryland stumped doctors in 2023—leading to the wrong treatment

When the state had its first locally acquired malaria case in over 40 years, the patient was misdiagnosed with a more common tick-borne infection, leading to weeks-long treatment for the wrong infection. The patient had symptoms that could occur with malaria or with babesiosis, a disease caused by Babesia parasites and transmitted by ticks in the US.

Post-polio syndrome occurs decades after infection but isn't contagious

Affecting adults who contracted polio as children, this disorder can occur 15 to 40 years later, leading to slow, irreversible muscle weakening. Some research estimates that between 25% and 40% of polio survivors go on to develop this condition.

There's no cure for West Nile virus—and infection can leave patients with permanent symptoms

This news story features Marie Heilman, a woman who became ill at age 40 from an infected mosquito bite in her yard. She says she was in a coma for 15 days, and though she woke up, she suffers from seizures, fatigue, vision issues, and has had two strokes.

American medical organizations rescind recognition of diagnosis cited in police custody deaths

American medical organizations have rescinded their recognition of a syndrome whose theory stemmed from discredited research. This article explores the history and implications of "excited delirium syndrome," a medical condition that can reportedly...

Long-haul COVID: What doctors want patients to know

Long COVID continues to be a medical mystery, but some parts of the puzzle are falling into place. Learn more from intensivist Devang Sanghavi, MD.

Chronic drug use can cause neurological changes in the brain

Neuroscientist Judy Grisel breaks down the biology of addiction, examining how drugs hijack the brain’s natural reward system and create lasting neural changes. The physiological and neurological impacts of chronic drug use require a multifaceted treatment approach.

Sclerosis is the technical term for the lesions or plaques that form without myelin

In the absence of myelin, the body forms scar tissue called sclerosis. That scar tissue hampers nerve's abilities to transmit nerve impulses, essentially acting as a roadblock to speedy communication.

An overview of modern clinical research on LSD

Researchers have determined that LSD, taken in a medical setting, decreases anxiety related to "life-threatening disease," reduces brain reactivity to fearful faces, increases the meaning and emotional response derived from music, and more. No complications of LSD administration have been observed in medical settings, though acute adverse effects, including exhaustion, nausea, and difficulty concentrating.

Health problems are being misdiagnosed as perimenopause symptoms

Symptoms of menopause and perimenopause (the premenopause period) can be varied enough that clinicians dismiss them in patients in their mid-30s and onward as just a symptom of hormone level change. In this story, a woman's itching was dismissed as a hormonal change, but after two years and 11 separate doctor consultations, was diagnosed as cancer. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

Clinical insomnia is defined as trouble sleeping for three nights per week for at least one month

The term "insomnia" is often used in popular culture to refer to general difficulty sleeping or staying asleep. In the US, insomnia transitions to a clinical disorder when symptoms—dissatisfying, nonrestful, and life-disrupting sleep—occur at least three nights per week for at least one month and cause "clinically significant" distress in important areas of life.

Schizophrenia is challenging to diagnose and treat

The disorder is diagnosed by a clinician who observes behaviors and medical history and may run additional tests to rule out other explanations for symptoms including physical injury or other mental health disorders. But, ultimately, it's largely a diagnosis of exclusion—since there is no definitive test for the disease. Antipsychotic medications can help control its symptoms for some patients, but there is no cure for schizophrenia.

There is no cure for the general condition of arthritis

While there are innumerable conditions ultimately leading to the joint pain we collectively term "arthritis," one common pathway is progressive inflammation and joint damage many years after an injury.

Type 1.5 diabetes is typically found in adulthood

Clinically referred to as latent autoimmune diabetes in adults, or LADA, this condition is often diagnosed as Type 2 diabetes. However, it’s an autoimmune disease that eventually requires insulin, just like Type 1 diabetes. Misdiagnosis can result in uncontrolled high blood sugar and a slew of other serious health issues.

Prolonged Grief Disorder has certain recognizable risk factors

This official diagnosis is characterized by intense, daily symptoms of grief a year after the loss of a loved one among adults and faster—around at least six months—for kids and teens. Factors that put people at increased risk of this disorder include being single, attachment anxiety, violent or unnatural death, low education, low income, and multiple losses, among others.

When to see a doctor over memory lapses

Memory includes various, distinct functions, like working memory (storing information temporarily) and procedural memory (your body's ability to perform a task unconsciously). Forgetting a word or losing your keys can feel like red flag memory lapses, but they are, in fact, language or attention problems, not memory ones. However, a lapse on top of stress, lack of sleep, chronic dysfunction, or an injury may be a red flag to see your doctor.

How supplements and alternative medicine are being used to treat MS

MS patients often use complementary and alternative medicine approaches for MS, including acupuncture, yoga, specific diets, herbs like turmeric, and cannabis. Information on integrative approaches often come from support groups and online communities. Complementary care is typically used in conjunction with traditional medicines.

Hookworm infection, though risky, may help fight certain autoimmune conditions by tamping down the immune system's inflammatory response.

The hormonal disorder PCOS was renamed PMOS in 2026, a move designed to improve care and research by shifting the focus to the hormonal causes of this condition that affects 1 in 8 women.

In 1939, baseball star Lou Gehrig delivered his inspirational 'Luckiest Man' speech after retiring due to the health condition that now bears his name.

Recent research found that the brain doesn't seem to massively rewire following amputation—upending earlier beliefs about the cause of phantom limb pain.

Read a deep dive on the 'all-purpose healing' peptide BPC-157.

About 12.5% of US adults experience a phobia in their lifetime, a diagnosis that hinges on the intense fear interfering with daily life and persisting for at least six months.

Larger animals like giraffes, elephants, and blue whales have developed a unique defense against cancer, a phenomenon known as Peto's Paradox

Urushiol, the oily toxin in poison ivy, can remain allergenic on clothing for years.

Some Pokémon have been named after real and fictional organisms, while some real-world species have been named after Pokémon, such as Chilicola charizard and Binburrum zapdos.

See images of medical cases of firework injuries shared on this 'Instagram for doctors.' (Warning: Graphic content)

Scientists have struggled to pin down Ebola's natural reservoir species for decades, but the available evidence suggests that it's very likely fruit and insect-eating bats found in Africa.

Budweiser stores yeast derived from the original 1800s strain in a secret bunker, which only the Head of Yeast Management can access—not even the CEO

The US Constitution is widely regarded as the longest-standing written national constitution still in force—see how it has influenced rights worldwide.

After her fellow cult members tried to kill her with an LSD-infused hamburger, one member of the Manson Family, the murderous cult led by Charles Manson, decided to testify against the group's leader.

Corals are themselves not coral reefs—the term refers to the tiny marine invertebrates that build the rigid reef.

For centuries, it was common to sleep in two shifts: a few hours at the beginning of the night, and a longer period beginning around midnight

Objects can be 3D printed with light by projecting 2D computerized tomography (CT) scans onto rotating cylinders of resin, which solidify upon exposure.

The Mona Lisa's celebrity status and repeated restorations have obscured what made the painting so revolutionary for its time

Dirty lightning is a thunderstorm created from friction between rising and falling flows of ash and smoke during volcanic eruptions.

Pure water does not conduct electricity because this flow of energy requires the movement of charged particles, and water is a neutral molecule.

The Ramones' 'Pet Sematary,' the theme song for the Stephen King novel of the same name, was written while the band was admiring the writer's collection of horror memorabilia.

The Great Salt Lake's distinct dual coloration results from high-salinity organisms that only live in the northern portion and produce a purple protein.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.

Neutron stars, the remains of some massive stars after they explode in a supernova, are the densest directly observable objects in the universe.

El Niño, Spanish for 'the boy,' was named after Jesus Christ because the phenomenon resembled the weather changes observed around Christmastime.