Generated by All in One SEO v4.9.10, this is an llms.txt file, used by LLMs to index the site. # European tick-borne diseases information resource ESCMID Study Group for Tick-Borne Diseases - ESGBOR ## Sitemaps - [XML Sitemap](https://www.esgbor.org/sitemap.xml): Contains all public & indexable URLs for this website. ## Posts - [Nordtick 2026](https://www.esgbor.org/news/nordtick-2026/) - Nordtick 2026, the largest Nordic congress on tick-borne diseases, will be held on June 2-4, 2026, in Varberg, Sweden. More information will follow. - [18th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and Other Tick-Borne Diseases (ICLB)](https://www.esgbor.org/news/18th-international-conference-on-lyme-borreliosis-and-other-tick-borne-diseases-iclb/) - 12-15 September 2027 in Malmö, Sweden. More information will follow soon. - [17th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and other Tick-borne diseases (ICLB)](https://www.esgbor.org/news/17th-international-conference-on-lyme-borreliosis-and-other-tick-borne-diseases-iclb/) - 17th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and other Tick-borne diseases (ICLB) 20257-10 September 2025 – Swissôtel, Chicago, Illinois.More information and registration: https://news.mayocliniclabs.com/2025-international-conference/ - [16th International Symposium on Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases](https://www.esgbor.org/news/16th-international-symposium-on-ticks-and-tick-borne-diseases/) - 16th International Symposium on Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases26-28 March 2025More information: https://ittbd-symposium.com/ - [First European conference on Tick-Borne Diseases (ETBD)](https://www.esgbor.org/news/first-european-conference-on-tick-borne-diseases-etbd/) - SAVE THE DATE March 10th & 11th, 2025CNAM Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France. More information: https://www.etbd.eu/ - [15th International Symposium on Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases](https://www.esgbor.org/news/15th-international-symposium-on-ticks-and-tick-borne-diseases/) - From 29-31 March 2023, the 15th International Symposium on Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases will be held in Weimar, Germany. More information can be found here: https://www.ittbd-symposium.com/ - [NorthTick International Conference on Tick-borne Diseases](https://www.esgbor.org/news/northtick-international-conference-on-tick-borne-diseases/) - On the 30th and 31st of May 2023 the NorthTick International Conference on Tick-borne Diseases will take place in Inverness, Scotland, UK. More information can be found here: https://northtick2023.scot/ ## Pages - [Other tick-borne diseases](https://www.esgbor.org/other-tick-borne-diseases/) - Anaplasmosis Babesiosis Borrelia miyamotoi Neoehrlichiosis Tick-borne encephalitis - [Overview of Neoehrlichiosis](https://www.esgbor.org/other-tick-borne-diseases/overview-of-neoehrlichiosis/) - History The first case reports of human infection with Neoehrlichia mikurensis were published in 2010 from Sweden, Switzerland and Germany (Welinder-Olsson et al; Fehr et al, von Loewenich et al). Prior to this, this bacterial species had been detected in ticks and wild rodents in the Netherlands and Norway but given other names. Its current - [About us](https://www.esgbor.org/esgbor/about-us/) - Mission & Objectives ESGBOR, ESCMID Study Group for Lyme Borreliosis, was first inaugurated at the 12th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and other Tick-Borne Diseases, 28 September 2010 in Ljubljana, Slovenia, and officially established at the ECCMID/ICC 2011 in Milan, Italy.Our mission is to provide a pan-European information resource for Lyme borreliosis and other tick-borne - [ESGBOR](https://www.esgbor.org/esgbor/) - About us Contact us Become a member ESGBOR publications Contact us - [Tick control](https://www.esgbor.org/prevention-control/tick-control/) - The risk of Lyme borreliosis is greatest in spring and early to mid-summer, with Ixodes ticks being found in abundance on vegetation and animals. However, significant tick activity can occur in mild winters, and disease transmission may occur unusually early or late in the year (Dautel et al. 2008. Int J Med Microbiol. 298 Suppl - [Tick removal](https://www.esgbor.org/prevention-control/tick-removal/) - Ticks are rarely detected in the early stages of feeding because their bites are painless. In some bitten individuals, the tick bite will itch after a day or two, but in many cases, ticks, especially larvae or nymphs, may feed to repletion undetected. The longer the tick feeds, the more likely it is to transmit B. - [Prevention & control](https://www.esgbor.org/prevention-control/) - Awareness Tick removal Prophylaxis Tick control - [Overview of Zoonotic Babesiosis](https://www.esgbor.org/other-tick-borne-diseases/babesiosis/) - HistoryBabesiosis is caused by tick-transmitted protozoa of the genus Babesia (Phylum Apicomplexa), which invade and multiply in vertebrate erythrocytes. Although best known as an animal disease, human babesiosis is attracting increasing attention as a worldwide emerging zoonosis. The first case was recorded in Croatia (then Yugoslavia) in 1956 and this fatal case was probably caused - [Vector competence](https://www.esgbor.org/ticks/vector-competence/) - The content will be available soon. - [Seasonality](https://www.esgbor.org/ticks/seasonality/) - The content will be available soon. - [Overview](https://www.esgbor.org/ticks/overview/) - The content will be available soon. - [Lyme borreliosis transmission](https://www.esgbor.org/ticks/transmission/) - The content will be available soon. - [Life cycle](https://www.esgbor.org/ticks/life-cycle/) - The content will be available soon. - [Habitat](https://www.esgbor.org/ticks/habitat/) - The content will be available soon. - [Epidemiology](https://www.esgbor.org/epidemiology/) - Introduction European incidence Seasonal occurrence Risk groups - [European incidence](https://www.esgbor.org/epidemiology/european-incidence/) - European countries have a wide variety of surveillance system (passive vs. mandatory and sentinel sites vs. national) for Lyme borreliosis, according to their public health structures. Clinical case definitions (clinical, laboratory, or both) and testing methods may also vary, limiting comparison across countries. Few countries have made Lyme borreliosis a compulsorily notifiable disease, mostly due - [Borrelia burgdorferi](https://www.esgbor.org/borrelia-burgdorferi/overview/) - BIOLOGY: The Spirochaete: Classification Spirochaetes were first identified by morphological characters and motility using dark-field microscopy. The first Borrelia species microscopically observed was Borrelia recurrentis by Otto Obermeier in 1868. Later, the analysis of 16S ribosomal gene sequences confirmed the order Spirochaetales as one of the bacterial phyla. This Order is divided into five families, Borreliaceae, Breznakiellaceae, Sphaerochaetaceae, Spirochaetaceae, - [Lyme borreliosis](https://www.esgbor.org/lyme-borreliosis/) - History Borrelia burgdorferi Clinical features Epidemiology Laboratory diagnosis Case definitions Treatment - [Clinical features](https://www.esgbor.org/lyme-borreliosis/clinical-features/) - Infection with Borrelia burgdorferi have a range of clinical presentations, depending on the length of time after the infection, the organs/systems affected, and host factors, such as the vulnerability of the immune system and immunogenetic factors. Clinical presentations can generally be divided into three stages, early localised Lyme borreliosis, early disseminated and late disseminated Lyme borreliosis. - [Introduction](https://www.esgbor.org/epidemiology/introduction/) - Lyme borreliosis has been reported throughout Europe where it is the most common tick-borne infection, as it is in the USA. Studies reported an increasing incidence in several countries over the previous 10-20 years, for example in Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (Fülöp & Poggensee 2008. Parasitol Res. 103 Suppl 1:117-20; Hofhuis et - [Clinical manifestations](https://www.esgbor.org/epidemiology/clinical-manifestations/) - The different manifestations of Lyme borreliosis do not show an even geographical distribution, which is probably due to the uneven distribution of the different B. burgdorferi genospecies. Only one of them, B. burgdorferi sensu stricto, has been implicated as the cause of disease in North America, but in Europe five genospecies, B. afzelii, B. garinii, - [Seasonal occurrence of early Lyme borreliosis](https://www.esgbor.org/epidemiology/seasonal-occurrence/) - The seasonal occurrence of early Lyme borreliosis cases (Figure 1) is linked closely to that of the feeding activities of the vector tick, Ixodes ricinus (Figure 2). Thus the seasonality of EM is determined primarily by the activity pattern of nymphal and adult ticks and is further influenced by the propensity of people to engage - [Groups at risk of Lyme borreliosis](https://www.esgbor.org/epidemiology/risk-groups/) - Seroprevalence and disease incidence rates are increased in certain occupational groups, e.g. forestry workers, some recreational groups such as orienteers and tourists to high-endemic areas (Septfons at al. 2023. Euro Surveill. 28(32):2200961; Burn et al. 2023. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis. 23(4):195-220.). However, identification of high-risk groups is not always straightforward and confounding factors are evidently - [Case definitions](https://www.esgbor.org/lyme-borreliosis/case-definitions/) - Based on Stanek et al., 2010 Clinical Microbiology and Infection *if less than 5 cm in diameter a history of tick-bite, a delay in appearance (after the tick bite) of at least 3 days and an expanding rash at the site of the tick-bite is required**Specific antibody levels in serum may increase in response to - [Treatment of Lyme borreliosis in Europe](https://www.esgbor.org/lyme-borreliosis/treatment/) - A tick bite leads to an infection with B. burgdorferi s.l. in less than 5% of the cases. Therefore, there is no indication to administer an antibiotic therapy after a tick bite with no clinical signs appearing after a few days. Only symptomatic patients with evocative clinical signs after a tick bite or at least - [Borrelia miyamotoi disease](https://www.esgbor.org/other-tick-borne-diseases/borrelia-miyamotoi/) - HistoryBorrelia miyamotoi is related to the relapsing fever borreliae and was first described from Ixodes persulcatus ticks collected in Japan (Fukunaga et al., 1995). A relapsing fever-like borrelia was subsequently found in the North American tick, Ixodes scapularis (Scoles et al., 2001) and since then similar spirochaetes have been reported from over a wide geographical - [Overview of Tick-borne Encephalitis](https://www.esgbor.org/other-tick-borne-diseases/tick-borne-encephalitis/) - History (based on Kunz & Heinz, 2003)The first mention of what was probably tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) occurred in the18th century in parish records on the Aland islands (Finland). The first medical description was published in 1931 by Schneider, who observed in southern Lower-Austria the regular seasonal incidence of a disease that he named “Epidemische akute Meningitis - [Laboratory diagnosis of Lyme borreliosis](https://www.esgbor.org/lyme-borreliosis/laboratory-diagnosis-of-lyme-borreliosis/) - The diagnosis of Lyme borreliosis should be made only after careful evaluation of the patient's clinical history, physical findings, laboratory evidence and exposure risk evaluation. Exposure to ticks prior to disease manifestations is essential for the diagnosis of Lyme borreliosis, although recollection of a tick-bite may not always be present. Suitable case definition criteria, which - [ESGBOR publications](https://www.esgbor.org/esgbor/esgbor-publications/) - Stanek G, Fingerle V, Hunfeld KP, Jaulhac B, Kaiser R, Krause A, Kristoferitsch W, O'Connell S, Ornstein K, Strle F, Gray J. Lyme borreliosis: clinical case definitions for diagnosis and management in Europe. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2011 Jan;17(1):69-79. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-0691.2010.03175.x. PMID: 20132258. Dessau RB, van Dam AP, Fingerle V, Gray J, Hovius JW, Hunfeld KP, - [History of Lyme borreliosis](https://www.esgbor.org/lyme-borreliosis/history-of-lyme-borreliosis/) - Lyme borreliosis (LB) is the most commonly reported tick-borne infection in Europe and North America. The disease is a multi-system disorder, which can affect a complex range of tissues including the skin, heart, nervous system, and to a lesser extent the eyes, kidneys and liver. The illness is caused by a spirochaete (spiral-shaped bacteria), which - [Prophylaxis](https://www.esgbor.org/prevention-control/prophylaxis/) - AntibioticsThere have been some suggestions that prophylactic antibiotic treatment should be given after the removal of ticks that have evidently fed for more than 24 hours. However, except in areas of very high risk where a high proportion of ticks carry invasive strains of the spirochaete, this approach is not justified.In the case of I. - [Awareness](https://www.esgbor.org/prevention-control/awareness/) - The most effective preventive measures against Lyme borreliosis and other tick-borne diseases currently depend on awareness of ticks and the possibility of tick-transmitted infections, leading to fast detection and prompt removal of ticks. Workers in high-risk occupations and long-term residents of endemic areas are likely to recognise ticks and may have some Lyme borreliosis awareness. - [Overview of Human Anaplasmosis](https://www.esgbor.org/other-tick-borne-diseases/anaplasmosis/) - HistoryThe pathogen causing human anaplasmosis was first observed as a tick-borne pathogen of sheep and cattle, in which it was found to cause transient fever (tick-borne fever), sometimes resulting in increased susceptibility to other pathogens, and also causing abortion in cattle (Woldehiwet, 2010). The observation that it occurs within circulating neutrophils initially resulted in the - [Upcoming events](https://www.esgbor.org/upcoming-events/) - [Reservoir hosts](https://www.esgbor.org/borrelia-burgdorferi/reservoir-hosts/) - Definitions and CriteriaA reservoir host is a vertebrate animal species that harbours a particular pathogen and acts as a long-term source of infection for other vertebrates or vectors (ticks in the case of LB). Ticks may also be infected by short term amplifying hosts and by co-feeding transmission. Reservoir hosts are usually the most significant - [Links](https://www.esgbor.org/esgbor/links/) - Coming soon... - [Differential diagnosis](https://www.esgbor.org/other-tick-borne-diseases/differential-diagnosis/) - Coming soon... - [Borrelia burgdorferi](https://www.esgbor.org/borrelia-burgdorferi/) - Overview Genospecies Reservoir hosts - [Genospecies](https://www.esgbor.org/borrelia-burgdorferi/genospecies/) - Coming soon... - [Ticks](https://www.esgbor.org/ticks/) - Overview Habitat Life cycle Seasonality Transmission Vector competence ## Events - [12th Tick and Tick-borne Pathogen Conference (TTP)](https://www.esgbor.org/event/12th-tick-and-tick-borne-pathogen-conference-ttp/) - 12th Tick and Tick-borne Pathogen Conference (TTP) Lisbon, Portugal, 2027. Specific dates will follow. More information: Coming soon. - [International Symposium on Tick-Borne Pathogens and Disease, ITPD 2026](https://www.esgbor.org/event/international-symposium-on-tick-borne-pathogens-and-disease-itpd-2026/) - International Symposium on Tick-Borne Pathogens and Disease, ITPD 2026 From the 22nd until the 25th of March 2026. Vienna Marriott Hotel Parkring 12a, 1010 Vienna, Austria. More information and registration: https://www.itpd-tickborne.com/ - [NordTick 2026](https://www.esgbor.org/event/nordtick-2026/) - Nordtick 2026, the largest Nordic congress on tick-borne diseases, will be held on June 2-4, 2026, in Varberg, Sweden. More information and registration can be found here: https://nordtick2026.se/ - [18th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and Other Tick-Borne Diseases (ICLB)](https://www.esgbor.org/event/18th-international-conference-on-lyme-borreliosis-and-other-tick-borne-diseases-iclb/) - 18th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and Other Tick-Borne Diseases (ICLB) 12-15 September 2027 in Malmö, Sweden - [17th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and other Tick-borne diseases (ICLB)](https://www.esgbor.org/event/17th-international-conference-on-lyme-borreliosis-and-other-tick-borne-diseases-iclb/) - 17th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and other Tick-borne diseases (ICLB) 2025 7-10 September 2025 - Swissôtel, Chicago, Illinois. More information and registration: https://news.mayocliniclabs.com/2025-international-conference/ - [16th International Symposium on Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases](https://www.esgbor.org/event/16th-international-symposium-on-ticks-and-tick-borne-diseases/) - 16th International Symposium on Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases 26-28 March 2025 More information: https://ittbd-symposium.com/ - [First European conference on Tick-Borne Diseases (ETBD)](https://www.esgbor.org/event/first-european-conference-on-tick-borne-diseases-etbd/) - SAVE THE DATE March 10th & 11th, 2025 CNAM Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, Paris, France. More information: https://www.etbd.eu/ - [11th edition of the Tick and Tick-Borne Pathogen Conference](https://www.esgbor.org/event/11th-edition-of-the-tick-and-tick-borne-pathogen-conference/) - TTP Conference is one of the most important conventions in the world devoted to taxonomy and evolution of ticks and tick – borne pathogens, their ecology and epidemiology, pathogenesis, diagnosis and strategies for their control including immunity and vaccines among others. For more information: https://agropecuaria.cigb.edu.cu/ttp11/ ## Categories - [News](https://www.esgbor.org/category/news/)