Malawista S E, Steere A C, Hardin J A
Yale J Biol Med. 1984 Jul-Aug;57(4):473-7.
Lyme disease is a complex immune-mediated multi-system disorder that is infectious in origin and inflammatory or "rheumatic" in expression. Through its epidemiologic characteristics, large numbers of a seasonally synchronized patient population are readily available for prospective study. Lyme disease has a known clinical onset ("zero time"), marked by the characteristic expanding skin lesion, erythema chronicum migrans, and a clearly defined pre-articular phase. At least some manifestations of the disorder are responsive to antibiotics, and the causative agent--a spirochete--is now known. These advantages make Lyme disease unique as a human model for an infectious etiology of rheumatic disease.
莱姆病是一种复杂的免疫介导性多系统疾病，其起源具有传染性，表现为炎症性或“风湿性”。基于其流行病学特征，大量季节性同步的患者群体很容易用于前瞻性研究。莱姆病有已知的临床发病时间（“零时间”），其特征为典型的进行性扩大的皮肤损害——慢性游走性红斑，以及明确界定的关节前期。该疾病的至少某些表现对抗生素有反应，并且现在已知其病原体——一种螺旋体。这些优势使莱姆病作为风湿性疾病感染病因的人类模型具有独特性。
