From the Los Angeles Times:

Wednesday, April 30, 1997

Ticked Off

Medicine: Malibu residents who believe they got Lyme disease from local
ticks want the county to take action. But the ailment is notoriously
difficult to diagnose and officials say they lack evidence.
By MATEA GOLD, JULIE MARQUIS (Julie.Marquis@latimes.com), Special to The
Times

   State health officials will meet this week to evaluate complaints
from dozens of Malibu residents who believe they have
contracted Lyme disease, a potentially debilitating illness that
locals fear is a growing threat on Los Angeles hillsides.
...
   So far, two doctors have diagnosed at least 15 Malibu residents
with Lyme disease, and many more suspect they are infected.
...
   "There's a lot of evidence pointing to the fact that in some key
areas in Southern California there is a problem which really isn't
getting followed up," said Richard Davis, a public health biologist
with the state Department of Health Services. "What makes it very
frustrating for myself and even more so for the patients is that there
seems to be an exceptionally large number of physicians who deny
that Lyme disease exists in this state."
...
   Although the local risk has not been determined, outside experts
cautioned that Los Angeles County should not downplay the threat,
and some urged a closer look.
   "These are not crazy people who have been sick their whole life
and are looking for one more excuse. . . . These are healthy,
energetic people who link their illness to a specific event [of being
bitten]," said Dr. James Katzel, head of UC San Francisco's Lyme
Disease Clinic and who is watching the Malibu situation. "These are
very reliable historians--we need to send people to analyze their
stories and figure out what they're telling us."
...
   In Los Angeles County, health authorities say, there were only
28 confirmed cases of Lyme disease between 1989 and 1996, with
at least 16 of them contracted elsewhere. No cases have been
confirmed in Malibu, but experts acknowledge that the disease is
underreported.
...
   About 1,500 cases of Lyme disease have been reported
statewide since 1989, and the Western black-legged tick that
carries the bacterium has been found in all but three counties. But
the ticks are mostly concentrated in Northern California.
...
   See Los Angeles Times, 30 April 1997

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