Isolation ofBorrelia burgdorferifrom the Myocardium of a Patient with Long-Standing Cardiomyopathy

Abstract

LYME borreliosis (or Lyme disease) is a systemic disorder caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, a newly discovered species of borrelia.^{1 , 2} The disease usually begins with a characteristic skin lesion; neurologic, cardiac, and joint involvement may develop weeks to months later. Some manifestations may last for years or even decades.³ Lyme borreliosis is transmitted by arthropods, especially by ticks of the genus ixodes and by some tabanid species. The area in which it is endemic includes most of the United States,⁴ all of Europe,⁵ the European and Asian parts of Russia,⁶ China,⁷ and Japan.⁸ Cardiac abnormalities induced by Lyme . . .