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Lyme disease is an infection that is caused by a spirochete (a type of microorganism) called Borrelia burgdorferi, and more rarely by Borrelia mayonii. It is transmitted to humans by the bite of a deer tick.
The disease has a strong geographical incidence, being highly concentrated in the Northeastern United States and also in Minnesota and Wisconsin. However, the tick's habitat has been spreading rapidly, and it is always a good idea to be cautious and consult medical help if you think you might have been bitten by a tick that could possibly be infected.
Lyme disease was first recognized in the area of Lyme, Connecticut, in 1975. It can start with a characteristic “bull’s eye” rash, in which there is a central spot that is surrounded by clear skin that is then ringed by an expanding rash. It can also appear just as an expanding rash.
This rash usually starts within days of the tick bite. Eye problems can occur along with this rash in the first phase of the disease. This includes red eyes that can look like full-blown pink eye, along with eyelid swelling. It also can produce iritis or uveitis, which include sensitivity to light and inflammation inside the eye.
The second phase of the disease usually starts within a few weeks of the tick bite and this occurs because the spirochete gets into the blood stream. This stage often has rashes starting away from the original bite site. It can also
The eye care medical field has an unusual split between two different types of insurance for covering eye issues: health insurance and vision insurance. Not all patients have both.
In most cases, your health insurance is used to cover medical and surgical eye problems but not routine exams or the cost of contacts or glasses. Those things are often covered by separate vision insurance.
Why the difference? Originally, health insurance was created to take care of health “problems” and wasn’t designed to cover “routine,” “screening,” or “wellness” exams.
Since health insurance wasn’t going to cover “routine” eye exams, the vision insurance industry arose to help insure/cover those routine exams as well as the costs of glasses and/or contacts if they were needed.
That dichotomy now often causes great confusion when you make an appointment at your eye doctor. When making your appointment, the office is going to need to know which insurance, if you have both, you are going to be using for this particular visit.
Why does the office need to know in advance which insurance you are using?
The main reason is that the rules and sometimes the providers are different for each insurance plan. The vision plans often require the office to check on your availability for coverage and get pre-authorization for the visit BEFORE you get to the office. There are also differences in which providers within an office are in network for the insurance. For example, in some practices the optometrists might be
