Backpacker Magazine – June 2006

Lyme Disease By The Numbers

Any way you slice it, Lyme disease is an expanding problem. Use this map and chart to understand how the disease is growing.

by: Christie Aschwanden

Any way you slice it, Lyme disease is an expanding problem. The number of confirmed cases has roughly doubled in the past decade. The map shows the distribution of reported 2004 cases of Lyme disease (in red) as well as the presence of the ticks that can cause it (in yellow and blue). Both the map and the information below confirm that most cases are still clustered in the Northeast and Midwest.

Rhode Island
Incidence Per 100,000: 68.39
Total Cases: 706

Pennsylvania
Incidence Per 100,000: 46.34
Total Cases: 5,730

Connecticut
Incidence Per 100,000: 40.28
Total Cases: 1,403

New Jersey
Incidence Per 100,000: 33.42
Total Cases: 2,887

New York
Incidence Per 100,000: 28.13
Total Cases: 5,399

Delaware
Incidence Per 100,000: 25.93
Total Cases: 212

Massachusetts
Incidence Per 100,000: 23.81
Total Cases: 1,532

New Hampshire
Incidence Per 100,000: 14.76
Total Cases: 190

Wisconsin
Incidence Per 100,000: 13.52
Total Cases: 740

Maine
Incidence Per 100,000: 13.40
Total Cases: 175

Maryland
Incidence Per 100,000: 12.54
Total Cases: 691

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