Professor Christian Perronne is head of the Department of Infectiology at the Raymond Poincaré university hospital at Garches, professor in infectious and tropical disease at the Paris-Ouest Faculty of Medicine, and codirector of a working group on vaccination at the WHO. He lives in Garches, a western suburb of Paris.
The definitive reference work on Lyme disease, this strange infection, transmitted by a tick bite, that can cause dermatitis, arthritis and even, if left untreated, neurological damage. Even so, the disease is under-diagnosed in France.
Why are patients so often abandoned to their suffering even though they are not seen as malingerers? Why is the disease not treated even though effective therapeutic protocols exist? Why is the spread of the disease not taken as seriously as it should be by the medical authorities? What is at stake in dealing with this disease? Where do we stand on research into the bacterium in question, Borrelia burgdorferi?
Professor Perronne, renowned scientist and the first to alert us to Lyme disease, takes stock of the many questions: patient experience, disease screening, health issues at national and international level, treatment strategy, biological research.
A comprehensive approach to the disease, its history and current reality, that responds to patients' questions and concerns.