CDC's National Lyme Disease Prevention Program

CDC’s National Lyme Disease CDC’s National Lyme Disease Prevention ProgramPrevention Program

C. Ben Beard, Ph.D.C. Ben Beard, Ph.D.Chief, Bacterial Diseases Branch Chief, Bacterial Diseases Branch

CDC – Division of Vector-Borne DiseasesCDC – Division of Vector-Borne Diseases

CDC’s Role with Lyme CDC’s Role with Lyme and Other VBDsand Other VBDs

Coordinate nation-wide surveillance Provide science-based recommendations for prevention and control Investigate disease outbreaks – both nationally and internationally Serve as a national reference and diagnostic laboratory Conduct multidisciplinary public health-oriented prevention research Provide training for diagnosing, preventing, and investigating VBDs Collaborate with universities, industry, and public health partners in

promoting sound disease prevention policies and practices

CDC serves as the lead federal agency for prevention of Lyme and other Vector-borne diseases (VBDs) in humans. Key program activities include…

Top 10 Notifiable Diseases in Top 10 Notifiable Diseases in the U.S., 2008 the U.S., 2008

Disease Case numbers 1. Chlamydia 1,210,523

2. Gonorrhea 336,742

3. Salmonellosis 51,040

4. Syphillis 46,277

5. AIDS 39,202

6. Varicella 30,386

7. Lyme disease* 28,921

8. Shigellosis 22,625

9. Giardiasis 18,908

10. Pertussis 13,278

*Confirmed cases - Total cases = 35,198

Lyme Disease in the U.S. Lyme Disease in the U.S. – Key Challenges in 2010– Key Challenges in 2010

Increasing case numbers Expanding geographic distribution No ‘magic bullet’ shown to be effective

in preventing human cases in large community trials

Polarization among key stakeholders (state/federal agencies, advocacy groups, physicians)

CDC’s 4-Part Strategy for CDC’s 4-Part Strategy for Preventing Lyme diseasePreventing Lyme disease

1. Strengthen and refine national surveillance

2. Identify and validate effective prevention methods and approaches

3. Improve early and accurate diagnosis and treatment

4. Leverage collaborative potential for program implementation

Strengthen and Refine National Surveillance

Work with state DoHs and CSTE to improve Lyme disease reporting and/or to arrive at more efficient and accurate estimates of Lyme disease cases

Evaluate the impact of recent case definition changes in on reporting practices and resulting case numbers

Establish regional TickNet sites to collect data on underreporting that can be used for determining the accuracy of surveillance estimates

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Identify and Validate Effective Identify and Validate Effective Prevention Methods and Prevention Methods and ApproachesApproaches

Conduct laboratory and field research on novel approaches for controlling ticks and blocking transmission (ex. RTVs, natural product acaricides, bait boxes, antibiotic baits, deer removal, novel vaccine targets, etc.)

Evaluate prevention education messages and develop improved communication plan

Evaluate the effectiveness of specific intervention methods and approaches at reducing human illness at TickNet sites

Develop, disseminate, and evaluate physician education material for Lyme disease diagnosis and treatment

Sponsor and/or conduct research aimed at developing and/or evaluating improved diagnostic tests

Procure serum specimens for use in validation of improved diagnostic tests

Improve Early and Improve Early and Accurate Diagnosis and Accurate Diagnosis and TreatmentTreatment

Leverage Collaborative Potential Leverage Collaborative Potential for Program Implementationfor Program Implementation Establish working relationships with key

stakeholders who are either current or potential future collaborators on national prevention efforts

Conduct road trips, sponsor regional conferences, set up strategic meetings to foster good communication and effective working relationships

Work with endemic communities to develop community-wide Lyme disease prevention programs

Consult with FDA in the evaluation and approval of improved diagnostic tests

FY2010 Key Extramural FY2010 Key Extramural Program InvestmentsProgram Investments

Funding plans… Cooperative agreements evaluating reservoir-targeted

vaccines and natural product insecticides 4 regional TickNet sites for surveillance studies and evaluation

of intervention methods Assistance to 15 states to aid in Lyme disease surveillance Projects aimed at developing improved diagnostic tests 5-year study looking at long term complications of Lyme

disease Local Lyme disease community prevention projects

Thank you for your Thank you for your time and attention! time and attention!

The findings and conclusions in this report have not been formally disseminated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and should not be construed to represent any agency determination or policy