Ex-rugby star still suffers Lyme disease after-effects two years on
FORMER ENGLAND rugby captain Matt Dawson has said he still cannot exercise as much he would like, two years after contracting Lyme disease through a tick bite.
The 45-year-old also suffers from an irregular heartbeat and needs regular check-ups.
Dawson developed feverish symptoms after visiting Chiswick Park in London in 2016 and was later diagnosed with Lyme disease. The bacterial infection, caused by infected ticks, can lead to conditions such as meningitis or heart failure if left untreated and can even prove fatal.
Dawson is now free of the disease, having undergone multiple heart operations and endured 18 months of treatment. He said he was unable to do as much exercise or socialise as he would like following his illness.
Dawson said cases of Lyme disease are increasing at a “frighteningly rapid rate”. The sporting star has teamed up with the Big Tick Project to raise awareness of the dangers.
“I still have regular check-ups, I seem to be a lot better after my surgeries, but I still have an irregular heartbeat that I have to monitor,” he said.
“My lifestyle has changed, I can’t do as much exercise, I can’t socialise as much as I would like to, and you just have to adapt accordingly.
“That’s all down to Lyme disease, and potentially down to a dog having a tick which fell in a park, it jumped on to me and the rest is history.
“I was very lucky because I saw the signs and there was quite an obvious sign of having a target on my back and had blood tests etc, but the number is just frighteningly increasing at a rapid rate and they’re the cases that we actually know of.”
The Big Tick Project, run by MSD Animal Health with the University of Bristol, is conducting the largest veterinary study of ticks and tick-borne diseases in the UK. The project is supported by more than 1,200 vets across the UK, and has so far examined more than 12,000 dogs and collected more than 6,000 ticks.