An antibiotic gel containing azithromycin helps to prevent against the bacterial infection, Lyme disease, according to University of Vienna researchers (computer translated). The research is published in the journal, Lancet Infectious Diseases.
During the clinical study, a total of 1,000 patients with a fresh tick bite (within 72 hours) were treated with the antibiotic gel twice daily for three days. 100 percent of the study participants did not contract Lyme borreliosis. In the placebo group, seven Lyme cases were identified, according to lead researcher, Bern Jilma.
Jilma said, “Therapy is quite simple: The gel must be applied every 12 hours for three days and the Borrelia are killed.”
Austria sees some 24,000 Lyme disease cases annually, while Western Europe sees more than 200,000 new infections, the study authors said. Around 20 percent of ticks in Europe carry the Borrelia bacteria.
Lyme disease is a multi systemic tick-transmitted infection that can cause serious health problems and disabilities.
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