Title |
Morgellons disease: a filamentous borrelial dermatitis
|
---|---|
Published in |
International Journal of General Medicine, October 2016
|
DOI | 10.2147/ijgm.s116608 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Marianne J Middelveen, Raphael B Stricker |
Abstract |
Morgellons disease (MD) is a dermopathy characterized by multicolored filaments that lie under, are embedded in, or project from skin. Although MD was initially considered to be a delusional disorder, recent studies have demonstrated that the dermopathy is associated with tickborne infection, that the filaments are composed of keratin and collagen, and that they result from proliferation of keratinocytes and fibroblasts in epithelial tissue. Culture, histopathological and molecular evidence of spirochetal infection associated with MD has been presented in several published studies using a variety of techniques. Spirochetes genetically identified as Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto predominate as the infective agent in most of the Morgellons skin specimens studied so far. Other species of Borrelia including Borrelia garinii, Borrelia miyamotoi, and Borrelia hermsii have also been detected in skin specimens taken from MD patients. The optimal treatment for MD remains to be determined. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United States | 33 | 19% |
Japan | 13 | 7% |
United Kingdom | 6 | 3% |
Australia | 3 | 2% |
France | 2 | 1% |
Germany | 2 | 1% |
Turkey | 1 | <1% |
Korea, Republic of | 1 | <1% |
India | 1 | <1% |
Other | 6 | 3% |
Unknown | 108 | 61% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 161 | 91% |
Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 7 | 4% |
Scientists | 7 | 4% |
Unknown | 1 | <1% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Unknown | 37 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Researcher | 9 | 24% |
Other | 8 | 22% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 3 | 8% |
Student > Bachelor | 2 | 5% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 2 | 5% |
Other | 3 | 8% |
Unknown | 10 | 27% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Medicine and Dentistry | 8 | 22% |
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 5 | 14% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 3 | 8% |
Social Sciences | 2 | 5% |
Immunology and Microbiology | 2 | 5% |
Other | 7 | 19% |
Unknown | 10 | 27% |