LDA Ranks States by 2014 Lyme Reported Case Numbers

The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) has just released the 2014 final Lyme disease reported cases numbers. Total US reported cases was 33,461─ CDC has reported that only 10% of cases are actually reported─ that translates into 334,610 actual new Lyme cases in the US in 2014.

The Lyme Disease Association, Inc. (LDA) has ranked the top 15 states based on those CDC reported Lyme case numbers.

LDA State Ranking by Reported CDC Lyme Cases——————(10x= actual cases)

1. Pennsylvania 7,487———————————————– 74,870

2. Massachusetts 5,304——————————————— 53,040

3. New York 3,736 (combined NYC & upstate) *————-  37,360

4. Jersey 3,286——————————————————– 32,860

5. Connecticut 2,360————————————————- 23,600

6. Minnesota 1,416————————————————— 14,160

7. Maine 1,401——————————————————— 14,010

8. Maryland 1,373—————————————————– 13,730

9. Wisconsin 1,361—————————————————- 13,610

10. Virginia 1,346—————————————————— 13,460

11. Rhode Island 904————————————————— 9,040

12. New Hampshire 724———————————————– 7,240

13. Vermont 599——————————————————— 5,990

14. Delaware 417——————————————————-  4,170

15. Illinois 233———————————————————— 2,330

Click here for CDC 2014 final disease numbers

Note: A large number of NYS counties extrapolate Lyme case numbers, and those numbers are not included in CDC surveillance. In 2014, for example, 19 counties used extrapolation, and thus their numbers are not included in CDC reported numbers. Adding the numbers NY State provided to LDA, which includes the averaging counties, shows NY to have 6,686 cases for 2014.

The CDC does not include a note in its MMWR which reports the national Lyme reported case numbers, although the LDA has requested of CDC that such a notice be included in a footnote, since the exclusion of such a large number of counties in one of the highest endemic states tremendously skewers Lyme reporting.