Human Borrelia miyamotoi Infection, Austria

Abstract

We report a human case of Borrelia miyamotoi infection diagnosed in Austria. Spirochetes were detected in Giemsa-stained blood smears. The presence of B. miyamotoi in the patient’s blood was confirmed by PCR, and phylogenetic analysis identified an infection with a strain from Europe.

Borrelia miyamotoi—An Emerging Human Tick-Borne Pathogen in Europe

“…In Europe, several single cases of BMD have been described [ 13 , 14 , 93 , 94 , 95 , 96 ]. Human cases of a positive PCR for B. miyamotoi in Europe are summarized in Table 2 .…”

“…Although a phylogenetic analysis of the B. miyamotoi isolate indicated an infection by a European type, the patient claimed a tick bite in the United States. Therefore, this case origin is unclear [ 95 ]. Additionally, one blood sample in the Netherlands was found to be PCR-positive and the patient reported no symptoms of BMD but had erythema migrans [ 14 ] ( Table 2 ).…”

“…A diagnosis of BMD should be considered in patients who experience fever attacks and live or spend time in regions where environmental conditions are favorable for ticks and their hosts. [ 95 ]. B. miyamotoi infection does not present specific symptoms of the relapsing fever group.…”

“…B. miyamotoi infection does not present specific symptoms of the relapsing fever group. Typically, patients experience fever with flu-like symptoms such as chills, headaches, muscle, and joint aches and general fatigue [ 89 , 95 ]. In the available literature, cases with recurrent febrile episodes interspersed with fever-free periods characterizing classic relapsing fever have been rarely reported [ 6 , 8 , 16 ].…”

“…In such cases, it appears that PCR methods are also more reliable. The amplification of various genes ( 16S rDNA, fla , p66 , 16S–23S internal spacer region) was used by the real-time PCR method in serum and CSF assays [ 13 , 95 , 103 ]. However, the glpQ gene was most often tested in combination with other genes or individually by qPCR.…”