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Copyright of Czecho-Slovak Pediatrics / Česko-Slovenská Pediatrie is the property of Czech Medical Association of JE Purkyne and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The Czech Republic is an important endemic area of Lyme borreliosis. Borrelia are transmitted by ticks and have an affinity for many organs and tissues (skin, nervous system, joints, myocardium, etc.). This is associated with a variety of clinical manifestations, with erythema migrans, neuroborreliosis and joint involvement being the most common in children. The basis of laboratory diagnosis is the detection of specific IgM and IgG antibodies, confirming contact with the infectious agent, not the activity of infection. Direct methods are of limited use mainly due to low sensitivity (PCR) or lack of clinical data (investigation of specific cellular immune response). A careful evaluation of the clinical picture, supported by laboratory test results, is the basis for diagnosis. In the early stages of the disease, the effect of antibiotic treatment is very good. An insufficient clinical response should lead to an extension of the diagnostic procedure to other, even non-infectious causes of the symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ticks are a vector and often a reservoir of viral and bacterial diseases. A person usually gets infected after the infestation of an infected tick or its developmental stage as a random link in its life cycle. Due to the geographical conditions in the Czech Republic, these diseases have a epidemiological significance and impact on morbidity. The communication subject describes infections, their epidemiology, clinical picture, and diagnostics, focusing on the specifics of childhood in our conditions. The subject of a separate communication is Lyme borreliosis, the most common of these presented diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]