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Exploring the association between Morgellons disease and Lyme disease: identification of Borrelia burgdorferi in Morgellons disease patients

Overview of attention for article published in BMC Dermatology, February 2015
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About this Attention Score

  • In the top 5% of all research outputs scored by Altmetric
  • One of the highest-scoring outputs from this source (#1 of 134)
  • High Attention Score compared to outputs of the same age (99th percentile)

Mentioned by

news
21 news outlets
blogs
1 blog
twitter
73 X users
facebook
71 Facebook pages
wikipedia
3 Wikipedia pages
googleplus
12 Google+ users
reddit
3 Redditors
video
3 YouTube creators

Citations

dimensions_citation
34 Dimensions

Readers on

mendeley
67 Mendeley
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Title
Exploring the association between Morgellons disease and Lyme disease: identification of Borrelia burgdorferi in Morgellons disease patients
Published in
BMC Dermatology, February 2015
DOI 10.1186/s12895-015-0023-0
Pubmed ID
Authors

Marianne J Middelveen, Cheryl Bandoski, Jennie Burke, Eva Sapi, Katherine R Filush, Yean Wang, Agustin Franco, Peter J Mayne, Raphael B Stricker

Abstract

Morgellons disease (MD) is a complex skin disorder characterized by ulcerating lesions that have protruding or embedded filaments. Many clinicians refer to this condition as delusional parasitosis or delusional infestation and consider the filaments to be introduced textile fibers. In contrast, recent studies indicate that MD is a true somatic illness associated with tickborne infection, that the filaments are keratin and collagen in composition and that they result from proliferation and activation of keratinocytes and fibroblasts in the skin. Previously, spirochetes have been detected in the dermatological specimens from four MD patients, thus providing evidence of an infectious process. Based on culture, histology, immunohistochemistry, electron microscopy and molecular testing, we present corroborating evidence of spirochetal infection in a larger group of 25 MD patients. Irrespective of Lyme serological reactivity, all patients in our study group demonstrated histological evidence of epithelial spirochetal infection. Strength of evidence based on other testing varied among patients. Spirochetes identified as Borrelia strains by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and/or in-situ DNA hybridization were detected in 24/25 of our study patients. Skin cultures containing Borrelia spirochetes were obtained from four patients, thus demonstrating that the organisms present in dermatological specimens were viable. Spirochetes identified by PCR as Borrelia burgdorferi were cultured from blood in seven patients and from vaginal secretions in three patients, demonstrating systemic infection. Based on these observations, a clinical classification system for MD is proposed. Our study using multiple detection methods confirms that MD is a true somatic illness associated with Borrelia spirochetes that cause Lyme disease. Further studies are needed to determine the optimal treatment for this spirochete-associated dermopathy.

X Demographics

X Demographics

The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 73 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Mendeley readers

Mendeley readers

The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 67 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.

Geographical breakdown

Country Count As %
United States 2 3%
United Kingdom 1 1%
Unknown 64 96%

Demographic breakdown

Readers by professional status Count As %
Researcher 12 18%
Other 7 10%
Student > Bachelor 7 10%
Student > Master 7 10%
Student > Ph. D. Student 6 9%
Other 12 18%
Unknown 16 24%
Readers by discipline Count As %
Medicine and Dentistry 19 28%
Agricultural and Biological Sciences 10 15%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology 5 7%
Immunology and Microbiology 4 6%
Social Sciences 2 3%
Other 9 13%
Unknown 18 27%
Attention Score in Context

Attention Score in Context

This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 260. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 17 March 2024.
All research outputs
#141,650
of 25,540,105 outputs
Outputs from BMC Dermatology
#1
of 134 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#1,617
of 368,277 outputs
Outputs of similar age from BMC Dermatology
#1
of 3 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,540,105 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 99th percentile: it's in the top 5% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 134 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 12.1. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 99% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 368,277 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 99% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 3 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has scored higher than all of them