title: Epidemiological features and clinical manifestations of Lyme borreliosis in Korea during the period 2005-2012.
abstract: Lyme borreliosis is one of the most common tick-borne infections in the northern hemisphere. However, the epidemiological features and clinical manifestations of this disease in Korea are unknown. The present study is the first to investigate the characteristics of Lyme borreliosis in Korea. We traced suspected cases of Lyme borreliosis during the period 2005-2012. Of the 16 identified patients with the disease, 11 had acquired autochthonous infection within Korea, while 5 patients were infected outside Korea. The history of past exposure was investigated in 8 of the 11 patients with autochthonous infection; 5 of these 8 patients (62.5%) were suspected to have acquired the infection in the northeastern alpine region. Clinically, of 11 patients with autochthonous infection, 6 (54.5%) showed early skin manifestations, 4 (36.4%) showed neurological manifestations, and 1 (9.1%) showed acrodermatitis chronica atrophicans. In conclusion, Lyme borreliosis could be endemic in the northeastern alpine region of Korea, and neurological and early skin manifestations are likely to be the major clinical characteristics of autochthonous Lyme borreliosis in Korea.
authors.affiliation: Division of Epidemic Intelligence Service, Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
authors.forename: Shinje
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Moon
authors.forename: Yeongseon
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.forename: Kyu-Jam
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: Suyeon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Jihye
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Eom
authors.forename: Donghyok
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.forename: Ji-Hyuk
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Seung-Ki
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Youn
authors.forename: Aeree
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sohn
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019353:Endemic Diseases; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D056910:Republic of Korea / Q000453:epidemiology