Higher risk of Lyme disease for the South

THE South of England has been earmarked as a high- risk area for Lyme disease.

Some regions appear to have a higher prevalence of infected ticks which cause the disease, according to Nice, the healthcare watchdog.

But it said data on the disease’s prevalence was incomplete and called for a large study into the condition. It set out a series of recommendations on how the condition can be assessed and treated.

Professor Saul Faust, chairman of the committee creating Nice’s guidelines, said: ‘Lyme disease may be difficult to diagnose as people can have common and unspecific symptoms, like a headache or fever, and they may not notice or remember a tick bite.’

Areas known to have a high population of ticks include Exmoor, rural areas of Hampshire, the South Downs, parts of Wiltshire and Berkshire, parts of Surrey and West Sussex and Thetford Forest in Norfolk. Further north, the Lake District, the North York Moors and the Scottish Highlands are affected.